Reuters: Biden Administration to Provide Another $725 Million in Military Aid to Ukraine

Reuters reported, citing two American officials, that President Joe Biden intends to approve an additional $725 million in military aid for Ukraine before leaving the White House in January 2025. According to these officials, the Biden administration aims to provide various anti-tank weapons, including landmines, drones, Stinger missiles, and ammunition for artillery rocket systems (HIMARS) to the Ukrainian army to prevent the advance of Russian forces. Reuters writes that this military assistance, drawn from U.S. weapon reserves, is expected to include cluster munitions, which are typically used in multiple-launch guided missile systems. One American official told Reuters that the Biden administration is likely to formally inform the U.S. Congress of its decision next Monday. The type and quantity of these weapons may also change in the coming days before Biden's signature. Biden is using special powers to send these weapons to Ukraine, allowing him to directly utilize U.S. arms and military equipment reserves to assist allied countries without needing congressional approval. The United States has not exported landmines in recent decades, and their use is controversial due to potential risks to civilians. Although over 160 countries have signed an agreement to ban the use of landmines, Ukraine has requested landmines since the onset of Russia's full-scale invasion in early 2022, as Russian forces also use them. The United States expects Ukraine to use these mines only on its own territory. Russian forces are currently advancing rapidly in Ukraine, having captured an area the size of half of London in the past month. One of the main promises of Donald Trump, the U.S. President-elect, has been to quickly end the war in Ukraine. On Wednesday, he appointed Kate Klegg as his special representative for the Ukraine war. Kate Klegg is a retired general who has presented a plan to Trump to end the war in Ukraine.