US announces $275M in new military aid for Ukraine

US Pledges $275 Million in New Military Aid to Support Ukraine's Defense Against Russian Aggression

Photo : Reuters

The United States will provide a new $275 million military aid package to Ukraine, aimed at helping the country counter Russia's assault on Kharkiv. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced this on Friday.

The package includes ammunition for HIMARS, 155 mm and 105 mm artillery rounds, missiles, anti-armor systems, and precision aerial munitions, according to the State Department.

“Assistance from previous packages has already reached the front lines, and we will expedite this new aid so the Ukrainian military can defend their territory and protect their people,” the statement said.

In his nightly video address on Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy mentioned that he had visited Kharkiv earlier in the day. He met with military officials, special services heads, and local authorities.

Zelenskyy noted that Ukrainian forces had regained control of border areas in northern Kharkiv, recently targeted by Russian troops.

This contrasted with comments from Viktor Vodolatsky, a member of Russia's State Duma. Vodolatsky told the Tass news agency that Russian forces controlled more than half of Vovchansk, a town 5 kilometers inside the Ukrainian border. He suggested that securing Vovchansk would allow Russian forces to target three cities in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region: Sloviansk, Kramatorsk, and Pokrovsk.

Reuters could not independently verify the battlefield reports from either side.

In a coordinated counteroffensive, Russia struck trains, tracks, and buildings in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region.

Ukraine’s national railway operator, Ukrzaliznytsia, reported no injuries from the attacks on the railway. However, local officials began evacuating children from Kharkiv due to the ongoing barrage by Russian forces.

Ukrainian officials announced the mandatory evacuation of 123 orphans and children living without their parents in the area over the next 60 days.

Since Russia's offensive began on May 10, more than 11,000 people have been evacuated from the Kharkiv region, according to regional Governor Oleh Syniehubov.

Russia's offensive aims to test Ukrainian defenses in Kharkiv and further south in Donetsk while also conducting incursions in the northern Sumy and Chernihiv regions. These new advances are stretching Ukraine’s depleted military.

The destruction of the train network adds further strain to Ukraine's military, which has been outmanned and outgunned for over two years of conflict in the area.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated his intention to create a “buffer zone” in Kharkiv to prevent Ukrainian cross-border attacks.

Ukrainian officials reported that Russian attacks killed at least seven people and injured at least 28 others in Kharkiv on Thursday.

Zelenskyy condemned the attack as "extremely cruel" and expressed frustration over insufficient air defense systems from Western allies. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba emphasized the urgent need for more U.S.-made Patriot air defense systems to protect against aerial bombardments.

“Unfortunately, mere words of solidarity do not intercept Russian missiles,” Kuleba wrote on social media.

Governor Syniehubov reported on Telegram that Russia had struck Kharkiv at least 15 times.

Kharkiv, with a population of about 1 million and located 19 kilometers from the Russian border, is a key target in the conflict.

In Russia’s Belgorod region, officials reported damage from Ukrainian aerial attacks on Thursday. The Russian Defense Ministry claimed it had destroyed 35 Ukrainian rockets and three aerial drones over Belgorod.

Belgorod regional Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov reported on Telegram that Ukrainian attacks had damaged a building, sparked a fire in Belgorod city, and caused damage to multiple houses in two villages.

Belgorod, located along the Russia-Ukraine border, frequently comes under Ukrainian attack.

Later on Thursday, the head of the Russia-annexed Crimean Peninsula reported that two bystanders were killed by a Ukrainian missile near Simferopol, the region’s main administrative center.

Zelenskyy is expected to attend the Group of Seven leaders' meeting in June to appeal for additional aid, according to media reports on Thursday.