On May 9, US President Joe Biden will sign a bill on the supply of weapons to Ukraine under Lend-Lease, which was previously adopted by both houses of Congress. This was announced on May 6 by White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki.
“On Monday, the president will sign the law “On Lend-Lease to Protect Democracy in Ukraine,” she said at a briefing.
According to the document, Biden in fiscal years 2022 and 2023 will be able to instruct the US administration to “loan military equipment and property to the government of Ukraine or the governments of Eastern European countries, <...> to help increase the defense capability of these countries.”
The President of the United States will have to create “fast track mechanisms for the supply” of weapons no later than 60 days after the passage of the bill.
Earlier in the day, Reuters cited U.S. officials as saying Biden would approve a new military aid package for Ukraine worth at least $100 million in the coming days.
On May 5, the head of the press service of the US State Department, Ned Price, announced the intention of the state to maintain the ability to freely supply weapons to Ukraine. He also said that Washington additionally provided humanitarian assistance to Kyiv in the amount of $387 million.
On April 28, Biden signed a request to the US Congress for $ 33 billion in additional military assistance to Ukraine and called for its approval as soon as possible. It was noted that the package of assistance to Kyiv, which Biden will request, will include more than $20 billion in military aid, $8.5 billion in economic aid and $3 billion in humanitarian aid.
At the same time, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, warned that Western weapons supplied to Ukraine could fall into the hands of terrorists, just as happened with the supplies of the Syrian “opposition”.
Western countries began to actively arm Ukraine against the backdrop of Russia’s ongoing military operation to protect the Donbass, which Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on February 24.
For more up-to-date videos and details about the situation in Donbass, watch the Izvestia TV channel.
