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The Biden administration announced an additional $500 million on Thursday military aid to Ukraine in a security package rushed out the door before President-elect Trump took office.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for the last time at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, where he made the announcement. Both officials took the opportunity to urge the incoming Trump administration to continue supporting Kiev’s fight against Russia.
“If Putin swallows Ukraine, his appetite will only increase,” Austin warned at the 25th meeting of some 50 member countries that have joined forces to back Ukraine with an estimated $122 billion in arms and support.
“If autocrats conclude that democracies will lose their nerve, give up their interests and forget their principles, we will only see more land grabs. If tyrants learn that aggression pays, we will only invite more aggression, chaos and war.”
From left: German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin attend a meeting of the Ukraine Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base, Germany , on Thursday, January 9, 2025. (Marijan Murat/dpa via AP)
The latest US security assistance to Ukraine includes missiles for fighter jets, support equipment for F-16s, armored bridge systems, small arms and ammunition, and other spare parts and communications equipment.
The weapons package is funded by the Presidential Withdrawal Authority (PDA), which means the weapons will come from US stockpiles, speeding up their delivery to Ukraine.
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Austin announced a new $500 million security package for Ukraine. (Marijan Murat/dpa via AP)
Officials noted that this is the seventy-fourth tranche of equipment from the Biden administration to be provided from Department of Defense inventories of Ukraine from August 2021.
This latest package leaves about $3.85 billion in funding to provide future arms shipments to Ukraine; if the Biden administration makes no further announcements, that balance will be available for Trump to send if he so chooses.
Zelensky called for the next administration to continue US support for his country’s defensive war against Russian invaders.
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The ruins of the city of Toretsk are seen in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine on December 19, 2024. (Photo by Ukrinform/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
“We have come such a long way that it would be foolish to drop the ball now and not continue to build on the defense coalitions we have created,” Zelenskyy said. “No matter what happens in the world, everyone wants to be sure that their country will not be wiped off the map.”
Countries in the coalition backing Kiev, including the US, have ramped up arms production since the Ukraine war exposed stockpiles as inadequate for a major conventional ground war.
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The US has provided about $66 billion of total aid since February 2022 and has already been able to deliver most of that total, between 80% and 90%, to Ukraine.
“Withdrawal will only provide incentives for further imperial aggression,” Austin said Thursday. “And if we hold back, you can count on Putin to push harder and hit harder. Ukraine’s survival is at stake. But so is the security of Europe, the United States, and the world.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
