US officials told POLITICO that the Biden administration is preparing a “larger than normal” weapons package for Ukraine that will include armored vehicles and arms to support Ukraine’s artillery and air defense capabilities.
The package is expected to include Bradley Fighting Vehicles, Humvees, M113 armored personnel carriers, and missiles.
The Pentagon wants the military equipment to be ready to go once President Biden signs a bill into law authorizing $61 billion in spending for the proxy war. The House passed the new Ukraine aid over the weekend, along with other military aid for Israel and Taiwan.
The three military aid bills will be rolled into a $95 billion spending package that the Senate is expected to vote on Tuesday. Biden spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday and said he would sign the bill into law once it reaches his desk.
“President Biden shared that his administration will quickly provide significant new security assistance packages to meet Ukraine’s urgent battlefield and air defense needs as soon as the Senate passes the national security supplemental and he signs it into law,” the White House said in a readout of the call.
Officials said the first arms package using the $61 billion will be “significantly larger” than the most recent US weapons package for Ukraine, which was worth $300 million. The US has previously provided Ukraine with arms packages worth over $1 billion.
Zelensky said on Monday night that the new bill stipulates Ukraine will receive Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS), which have a range of about 190 miles. The US has secretly armed Ukraine with an older cluster bomb variant of ATACMs that can hit targets up to 100 miles away but hasn’t sent the newer version.
“In the agreement on ATACMS for Ukraine, all the details are in place,” Zelensky said. “Thank you, Mr. President, thank you Congress, thank you America.”
Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) said on Sunday that the US could ship ATACMs as soon as next week. The provision of ATACMs will mark a significant escalation since the missiles have a longer range than anything the US has provided Ukraine up to this point.
The new US aid for Ukraine will ensure that the war continues, but it’s not expected to make much of a difference as Kyiv is facing serious manpower shortages. Russia has also been making steady gains for months now and has stepped up missile and drone strikes on Ukrainian infrastructure in response to drone attacks on its territory.
