The Biden administration is working to increase arms deliveries to Ukraine in its final days in office in a concerted effort to put Kiev in a strong position in 2025, according to a senior administration official.
The effort is in sharp contrast to that of the Trump administration, with President-elect Donald Trump sharply criticizing a recent move to allow Ukraine to use U.S.-supplied weapons to attack inside Russia. He made the statement in an interview with Time Magazine published this Thursday (12).
In the latest show of support for Ukraine, the Biden administration on Thursday announced a $500 million aid package that will remove equipment from US military stockpiles.
The senior government official told CNN that the administration is investing resources to get weapons previously announced for Ukraine into Kiev’s hands before Biden leaves office.
“DoD is undertaking a historic effort to move large quantities of weapons to Ukraine over the next five weeks,” the senior administration official said.
“Between now and mid-January, we will deliver to Ukraine hundreds of thousands of artillery rounds, thousands of rockets, hundreds of armored vehicles and other critical capabilities,” he added.
An interagency effort to hand over the weapons is being led by National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, the senior official said.
In November, Sullivan told Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on behalf of the president to “accelerate” deliveries of armored vehicles, rockets, artillery and more to Ukraine. The Pentagon is now carrying out sea and air transportation to meet the delivery deadline.
Sullivan just briefed Andriy Yermak, head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, on sea and air transport last week, a source familiar with the matter said. David Shimer, director of Ukraine’s National Security Council, has been coordinating with the Pentagon on its efforts.
The new push for delivery to Ukraine has not changed the situation that there are no American troops on the ground in Ukraine, the familiar source said, and weapons are being transported across Europe in the same way they have been throughout the war. But the source said the increase in deliveries is involving a significant number of flights and sea vessels.
Meanwhile, in the interview with Time — which was conducted in late November but published this Thursday with Trump’s selection as the 2024 Person of the Year — Trump was pressed on how he will support Ukraine after taking office. He said in the interview that he “vehemently” disagreed with the Biden administration’s decision to allow Ukraine to attack inside Russia with US-supplied weapons.
“We are only escalating this war and making it worse,” Trump said. “This should not have been allowed. Now they are making not just missiles, but they are making other types of weapons. And I think that’s a very big mistake, a very big mistake,” he added.
Mike Waltz, Trump’s pick to be the next national security adviser, has been weighing proposals to end the war, including one from retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg — who Trump announced as his special envoy for Ukraine and Russia — who would make continued U.S. aid to Ukraine dependent on Ukraine’s participation in peace negotiations with Russia.
Another proposal would allow Russia to keep the territory it currently holds in exchange for giving Ukraine NATO membership.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he wants to work “directly” with Trump and believes the war will end “faster” when he is president. Trump and Zelensky met last week in Paris, along with French President Emmanuel Macron.
THE CNN reported that the Pentagon is unlikely to use all of the remaining nearly $7 billion in funding that was authorized by Congress to arm Ukraine when Biden leaves office, largely due to limitations on the military’s ability to replenish its own stockpiles.
The familiar source, however, said the administration is confident it will use appropriate funding for Ukraine, drawing a distinction from what has been authorized.
But still, the biggest challenge facing Ukraine isn’t its weapons stockpiles, the senior administration official said — it’s manpower.
The source familiar with the matter said the Biden administration’s emphasis on Kiev’s need to resolve its military problem is part of a larger effort to ensure Ukraine is in the best position possible by 2025.
“Ukraine is not deploying or training enough soldiers to staff its front-line units,” the official said.
“The US stands ready to help train newly mobilized soldiers: if Ukraine mobilizes additional soldiers and sends them to training sites outside Ukraine, we will train them. But first, Ukraine needs to make a decision to deploy more soldiers,” he added.
This content was originally published in Biden government works to increase deliveries to Ukraine; Trump criticizes action on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
