Heavier military equipment, as promised by the United States last week, has already arrived in Ukraine. Ammunition from the West has included artillery aid and fighter jets, new and old equipment.
Two months have passed since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and Ukraine’s demands for more effective weapons aid from the West have been further tightened.
US prepares new $ 800 million weapons package for Ukraine, several official sources told news channel CNN (switch to another service)to earlier this week.
President of the United States Joe Biden told reporters on Tuesday the country plans to send more artillery equipment to Ukraine. According to sources, the exact timetable for the adoption of the package is not yet known.
United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the Minister of Defense Lloyd Austin are on Sunday during a visit to Kiev, said the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi at a press conference on Saturday. The issue was reported by an American, among others CNN news channel (switch to another service).
Ministers are expected to discuss Ukraine’s demand for more effective weapons.
Heavier equipment arrived
Heavier military equipment, promised by the United States last week, has already arrived in Ukraine from the previous $ 800 million arms aid package. The package included helicopters, armored personnel carriers and field cannons, among other things.
Ukraine is also known to have received at least a replenishment of its air force fleet from its Western Allies.
The U.S. doesn’t say the number or brand of the planes, but these are apparently Soviet-made Mig-29 fighters.
New and old equipment
Many other countries have sent weapons to Ukraine, with both new and old equipment.
Estonia’s latest aid tranche includes field cannons that Estonia once received from Finland. Estonia has also supplied Ukraine with drones, anti-tank missiles, landmines, disposable minks and howitzers and their ammunition, among others.
The howitzers given to Ukraine are Soviet-made 122 mm field cannons that Estonia purchased from Finland in 2009. Finland, on the other hand, had bought them from Germany in the 1990s. Estonia had to get permission from both countries to hand over cannons.
The number of donated wagons in the Czech Republic is estimated at several dozen, of which more than ten are T-72M wagons, according to the Estonian Broadcasting Corporation. T-72M is a Soviet and BVP-1 Czechoslovak product. So the equipment is old and familiar to Ukrainians.
Artillery aid from Canada, Holland and Britain
Also the Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau promised more artillery in Ukraine after talks with Biden and other Western leaders on Tuesday. Trudeau promised more information about weapons assistance later.
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Boris Johnson said on Tuesday Britain will also send artillery weapons to Ukraine.
Finland has decided to send defense aid to Ukraine last week. According to the Ministry of Defense, no further information is provided on the content, delivery method or schedule of the assistance in order to ensure its delivery.