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U.S. NEWS Saturday 23 July 2022

White House announces $270M military package for Ukraine

By NOMAAN MERCHANT three launchers of a differ-
and AAMER MADHANI ent kind with GMLRS rock-
Associated Press ets as well.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Both sides in the war have
White House announced made ample use of drones.
Friday that the U.S. is send- The U.S. had previously
ing an additional $270 mil- committed to sending 121
lion in security assistance Phoenix Ghosts to Ukraine.
to Ukraine, a package that Pentagon officials have not
will include additional me- fully disclosed the capabili-
dium range rocket systems ties of those drones, which
and tactical drones. were developed by the U.S.
The latest tranche brings the Air Force and produced by
total U.S. security assistance Aevex Aerospace, which
committed to Ukraine by describes itself as a leader
the Biden administration in "full-spectrum airborne
to $8.2 billion, and is being intelligence solutions." The
paid for through $40 billion latest batch of Ghosts is ex-
in economic and security pected to arrive starting in
aid f or Ukraine approved. August.
by Congress in May. The drones have onboard
The new package includes cameras and can be used
four High Mobility Artillery to attack targets. Speaking
Rocket Systems, or HIMARS to reporters Friday, a senior
and will allow Kyiv to ac- U.S. defense official de-
quire up to 580 Phoenix clined to say how the Ghost
Ghost drones, both crucial is used but said Ukraine had
weapon systems that have integrated drones into its
allowed the Ukrainians to battlefield approach "to
stay in the fight despite Rus- great effect." The official
sian artillery supremacy, ac- spoke on condition of ano-
cording to John Kirby, the A launch truck fires the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) produced by Lockheed nymity under rules set by
White House National Se- Martin during combat training in the high desert of the Yakima Training Center, Washington in the Pentagon.
curity Council's coordinator May 23, 2011. The U.S. disclosed earlier
for strategic communica- Associated Press this month that it believes
tions. The latest assistance Russia is planning to obtain
also includes some 36,000 ammunition but has sus- flict, Ukraine has made am- "hardly had any rest during several hundred drones
rounds of artillery ammuni- tained huge losses of ple use of Western-supplied the day or at night." from Iran. Iranian drones
tion and additional ammu- troops and equipment technologies as it defends U.S. authorities also are pro- have previously penetrat-
nition for the HIMARS. as Ukrainian forces have its eastern lines. viding Ukraine with more ed Saudi and Emirati air de-
"The president has been been equipped with pre- Ukraine has long sought guided rockets known as fense systems in the Middle
clear that we're going to cision weaponry from the more HIMARS launchers, GMLRS. The Pentagon con- East that were supplied by
continue to support the U.S. and other Western al- which fire medium-range tinues to rule out sending the U.S. Biden administra-
government of Ukraine and lies. CIA Director William rockets and also can be longer-range rockets that tion officials have tried to
its people for as long as it Burns on Wednesday said quickly moved before Rus- Ukraine could potentially publicly discourage Iran
takes," Kirby said. the U.S. estimates roughly sia can target them. On use to strike deep into Rus- from moving forward with
Ukrainian forces have used 15,000 Russian forces have Wednesday, Ukrainian sian territory. That's a nod to the transfer.
U.S.-made rocket launch- been killed. That death toll forces reportedly used a the U.S. trying to manage The White House released
ers and tactical drones to would be equivalent to the HIMARS to hit a strategic the risk of Russia instigating satellite imagery that indi-
destroy dozens of Russian Soviet Union's military losses bridge in the Russia-oc- a broader war. cates Russian officials twice
targets and hold at bay in its 1980s war in Afghani- cupied southern region of The U.S. has already sent visited Iran in June or July
Russia's larger and more stan, which lasted nearly a Kherson. One military ex- 12 truck-mounted HIMARS for a showcase of weap-
heavily equipped forces. decade. pert told The Associated to Ukraine. The United King- ons-capable drones it is
Russia can fire far more To try to equalize the con- Press that the systems have dom has also provided looking to acquire.q