US announces $425m in new military aid for Ukraine

Washington — US President Joe Biden spoke to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday about efforts to increase security assistance to Ukraine and announced a new $425m military aid package.

The security package included air defence capability, air-to-ground munitions, armoured vehicles and critical munitions, the White House said in a statement.

Zelensky, writing on Telegram, expressed gratitude to Biden, both parties of Congress and the American people for the new package. He said he spoke to Biden about Kyiv’s five-point plan, which he presented to parliament on Wednesday.

“I proposed considering the possibility of joint weapons production,” he said. “We also discussed the importance of additional training for Ukrainian soldiers.”

Zelensky will attend a Nato ministers’ meeting on Thursday, the defence alliance’s revised agenda, published late on Wednesday, shows.

As Moscow’s forces advance in the east and a bleak winter of power cuts looms, Zelensky told parliament his plan contained five main points that were in the hands of his allies, including an unconditional invite to join Nato now and weapons support.

In return, he offered a Western role in developing Ukraine’s natural mineral resources and said Ukrainian troops could enhance the security of Nato and replace some of the US forces in Europe.

“Together with our partners, we must change the circumstances so that the war ends. Regardless of what Putin wants. We must all change the circumstances so that Russia is forced to peace,” he told legislators and top officials.

Zelensky, who has unrelentingly called for a “fair” end to the war, said his plan was needed to force the Kremlin to negotiate in good faith, though he appeared to acknowledge in his speech that some allies see the war’s end game differently.

“We hear the word ‘negotiations’ from partners and the word ‘justice’ much less often. Ukraine is open to diplomacy, but honest (diplomacy),” he said.

His plan proposed establishing a “comprehensive non-nuclear strategic deterrence package” inside Ukraine to protect against threats from Russia and to destroy its military power. He did not elaborate, but said there was an additional secret addendum that he could not disclose.

The plan, he added, also envisaged post-war reconstruction pledges.

The plan is a major test of the political will of Kyiv’s key allies, who have poured in many billions of dollars of weapons to support Ukraine, while navigating fears of an “escalation” in a war against a nation with the world’s largest nuclear arsenal.

Earlier on Wednesday, Nato chief Mark Rutte said he was aware of the details of Zelensky’s plan and that he was in touch with the Nato member states on the next steps.

“The victory plan, of course, we are very much debating with them and using every opportunity to take that one step-by-step further,” Rutte said.

Reuters