BY: NewsPeddlers
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| French president Emmanuel Macron and Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskyy |
French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi arrived Kyiv on Thursday, June 16, 2022. In a show of support for Ukraine amid its battle to fend off a Russian invasion.
The trip comes as the European Commission considers whether to recommend Ukraine be granted candidate status for EU membership.
The United States announced Wednesday it is sending $1 billion more in military aid to Ukraine, VOA has it as Washington’s 12th and biggest tranche yet of weaponry and equipment intended to confront Russia’s slow but relentless advance on Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters at the White House the aid includes $350 million of equipment coming directly from the U.S. military, including 18 high-powered mobile long-range howitzers, 36,000 rounds of ammunition and 18 tactical vehicles to tow the howitzers, along with additional ammunition and other equipment.
Kirby said the remaining $650 million in aid, including coastal defense systems, radios, night vision devices and other equipment, will be purchased by the Pentagon from weapons manufacturers through a funding mechanism known as the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative.
Kirby said the United States has provided more than $914 million in humanitarian assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of the invasion on February 24, including an additional $225 million announced Wednesday by President Joe Biden. Biden said in a statement the new money will fund safe drinking water, critical medical supplies and health care, food, shelter, and cash for families to purchase essential items.