Russia-Ukraine War: US Preparing $275 Million Military Aid Package For Kyiv, Says Report

Russia’s forces have pounded the northeastern city of Kharkiv for months and launched a ground assault into the north of the surrounding region on May 10.

United States President Joe Biden. ( Image Source :Getty Images )

Russia-Ukraine War: The United States is preparing a $275 million military aid package for Ukraine amid its war with Russia. The package will include 155mm artillery shells, precision aerial munitions, and ground vehicles, news agency Reuters reported on Thursday, citing three U.S. officials.

The weapons aid is likely to be announced on Friday. It will utilise Presidential Drawdown Authority, which gives authority to the president to transfer articles and services from U.S. stocks without specific congressional approval during an emergency. The officials spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak on the matter publicly.

Russia’s forces have pounded the northeastern city of Kharkiv for months and launched a ground assault into the north of the surrounding region on May 10.

As a part of the $95 billion aid bills, Congress authorised $60.8 billion worth of various forms of aid to Kyiv, including $8 billion worth of presidential drawdown authority items, Reuters reported. The package includes munitions along with vehicles that are designed to recover disabled tanks and other heavy equipment from the battlefield.

According to Reuters, military analysts expected a boost in the order backlog of RTX, along with other big companies that receive contracts from the government, such as Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, and Northrop Grumman, after the passage of the supplemental spending bill.

Meanwhile, at least seven people were killed and 21 others sustained injuries in a wave of missile strikes on Ukraine's northeastern city of Kharkiv, news agency IANS reported, citing local authorities. Oleg Synegubov, the Governor of the Kharkiv region, said on Thursday that Russian forces launched about 15 missiles against the city.

All those killed were employees of a printing house, Synegubov said, noting that about 50 people were working inside the building at the time of the missile strike, Xinhua news agency reported. The tensions in the Kharkiv region have escalated this month after Moscow launched a fresh offensive.