Washington DC [US], November 2 : The United States announced a significant boost to Ukraine's defence capabilities, pledging USD 425 million in aid amid the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. This latest package includes air defence systems, munitions for rocket systems and artillery, armoured vehicles, and anti-tank weapons.
In a statement, the Pentagon said, "The Department of Defense (DoD) announced additional security assistance to meet Ukraine's critical security and defence needs. This announcement is the Biden Administration's sixty-ninth tranche of equipment to be provided from DoD inventories for Ukraine since August 2021."
It added, "This Presidential Drawdown Authority (PDA) package, which has an estimated value of $425 million, will provide Ukraine additional capabilities to meet its most urgent needs, including air defence interceptors; munitions for rocket systems and artillery; armoured vehicles; and anti-tank weapons."
The announcement by the US includes munitions for National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS); stinger missiles; Counter-Unmanned Aerial Systems (c-UAS) equipment and munitions; air-to-ground munitions; ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS); 155mm and 105mm artillery ammunition; tube-launched, optically tracked, Wire-guided (TOW) missiles; javelin and AT-4 anti-armour systems; stryker armoured personnel carriers; small arms and ammunition; medical equipment; demolitions equipment and munitions; and spare parts, ancillary equipment, services, training, and transportation.
Notably, the defence package announcement by the United States comes after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday revealed that approximately 10,000 North Korean soldiers are currently in Russia, with around 8,000 deployed in the Kursk region.
During a press conference, Blinken had said, "We now assess that there are some 10,000 North Korean soldiers in total in Russia. And recent information indicates that as many as 8,000 of those North Korean forces have been deployed in the Kursk region. We have not yet seen these troops deployed in the combat against Ukrainian forces but we expect that to happen in the coming days."
He added, "Russia has been training Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) soldiers in artillery, UAVs, and basic infantry operations, indicating that they fully intend to use these forces in front-line operations. Should these troops engage in combat or combat-support operations against Ukraine, they would become legitimate military."