President Joe Biden’s administration is providing another $500 million in security assistance to boost Ukraine’s military arsenal in the final days before he leaves office, amid uncertainty over the prospect or possibility of negotiations with Russia.
His defense minister warned of dire consequences if Russia manages to swallow the country – and Ukrainian President Zelensky says it would be “crazy” to waste the alliance leaders who had come together to protect the country.
“We have come such a long way that it would, quite frankly, be crazy to drop the ball now and not continue to build on the defense coalitions we have created,” Zelensky said Thursday. ‘No matter what happens in the world, everyone wants to be sure that their country is not simply erased from the map.’
The aide’s announcement came after Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met with Zelensky as he seeks to shore up Ukraine’s economy and defense before handing power to Donald Trump.
The security assistance comes from US weapons stockpiles, as Austin met with Zelensky at Ramstein Air Base in Germany after working with a defense group in the latest move aimed at strengthening Ukraine.
“Our focus will be on maintaining momentum, delivering results and sending a clear message: the international community is resolute in its support for Ukraine,” Austin told reporters.
He echoed a refrain from the Biden administration that the security of the U.S. and its allies is affected by what happens in Ukraine. “If Putin swallows up Ukraine, his appetite will only increase,” Austin said of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
There had been plans for a final meeting between Biden and Zelensky during the president’s trip to Rome, but the White House announced Wednesday evening that it was canceling Biden’s trip as he grappled with the massive wildfires in Los Angeles.
President Joe Biden’s administration is sending another security aid package to Ukraine. Years of US military packages aimed at improving its position on the battlefield and at the negotiating table, should the country decide to open talks
It would be another symbolic effort aimed at supporting the Ukrainian president, who is facing new pressure from the new government to reach a negotiated solution three years after the Russian invasion.
Since the brutal invasion began, the administration has committed $65 billion in security assistance, with the Biden camp pushing to get every appropriated dollar out the door before handing the keys to Trump, whose aides have made a series of comments saying that Kiev should do that. make a deal.
Combined, the Group of 50 countries has given more than $120 billion to Ukraine.
New sanctions are also planned to try to further hamper Russia’s economy, with inflation there at around 9 percent and interest rates rising.
Trump made another comment at his Tuesday press conference at Mar-a-Lago in which he expressed appreciation for Russia’s position — describing Moscow’s fear of NATO expansion even as the Biden administration opposed the calls from Kiev for full membership of the military alliance.
“A big part of the problem is that Russia – for many, many years, long before Putin – said, ‘You could never get NATO involved in Ukraine.’ Now, they said that. That’s written in stone, so to speak,” Trump said. “And somewhere along the way, Biden said, ‘No. They should be able to join NATO.” Well, then Russia has someone on their doorstep, and I can understand their feelings about that,” Trump said.
The Biden administration believes it has put Ukraine in a much stronger position, emphasizing that only Ukraine can decide when it is in its best interest to negotiate.
The aim was to strengthen Ukraine’s position, based on the belief that 2025 or a future period could be ripe for negotiations. It has come in the form of thousands of rockets and artillery rounds, plus $50 billion in economic relief loans derived from interest on seized Russian assets. ($20 billion from the US).
A US official said Ukraine has healthy weapons stockpiles and that the government has met its needs at every stage, including strengthening air defenses amid Russia’s repeated attacks on Ukrainian cities and infrastructure.
Zelensky must decide if and when to attempt negotiations with Moscow as his forces continue to inflict casualties while inflicting heavy casualties on Russia’s invading forces.
The Biden administration continues to provide military aid to Ukraine in its final days, as part of an effort to strengthen the country’s overall position
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin (right) and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attend a meeting of the Ukraine Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, Thursday, January 9, 2025
About $4 billion remains in allocated funding for Ukraine, an amount the government is expected to spend. A December package provided $1.25 billion in yet another attempt to strengthen Ukraine in an uncertain future.
But the official said it is difficult to predict whether the Russians or Ukrainians will be ready for talks anytime soon, although the topic is increasingly discussed on both sides.
The transfer comes at a time when Ukraine has suffered some battlefield losses at the hands of Russian invaders in the east. A Ukrainian offensive in Russia’s Kursk region has stunned Moscow and managed to hold some territory, while North Korean troops deployed to reinforce Russia’s counterattack have suffered heavy losses.
The US believes that Russia has suffered about 600,000 casualties, including those killed or injured, and is suffering about 1,500 casualties per day, while the gains are relatively small.
Although some US officials were critical of the tactics as Ukraine launched a surprise counterattack on the Kursk region at the risk of weakening its own defenses, troops have managed to hold ground, aided by US equipment.
Zelensky says 15,000 Russian soldiers were killed trying to drive them out.
“During the Kursk operation, the enemy has lost 38,000 soldiers in this direction alone, with almost 15,000 of these losses being irreversible,” he told the country, in figures that could not be verified.