• Latest
  • Trending
  • All
  • News
  • Business
  • Lifestyle
Sec Def Austin Unveils $400 Million Arms Package For Ukraine — But One Thing Is Missing

Sec Def Austin Unveils $400 Million Arms Package For Ukraine — But One Thing Is Missing

October 21, 2024
MATT MOWERS: After NATO Summit, Europe’s Free Ride Is On The Line

MATT MOWERS: After NATO Summit, Europe’s Free Ride Is On The Line

July 5, 2025
JENNY BETH MARTIN: A Socialist Victory – And A Warning For America’s 249th Birthday

JENNY BETH MARTIN: A Socialist Victory – And A Warning For America’s 249th Birthday

July 4, 2025
Trump Says Friday Is Elon Musk’s ‘Last Day, but Not Really’

Musk Continues Push For America Party

July 4, 2025
Trump Signs ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Into Law

Trump Signs ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Into Law

July 4, 2025
Lee Greenwood on ‘God Bless the USA’ Legacy: ‘That’s Where Patriotism Starts’

Lee Greenwood on ‘God Bless the USA’ Legacy: ‘That’s Where Patriotism Starts’

July 4, 2025
Trump Seeking Military Costumes for Parade

Trump Lambasts Dems Who Voted Against ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’

July 4, 2025
WILL SELLERS: Misunderstanding The Road To Independence

WILL SELLERS: Misunderstanding The Road To Independence

July 4, 2025
Dems’ ‘Project 2029’ May Not Actually Bode Well For Party’s Future

Dems’ ‘Project 2029’ May Not Actually Bode Well For Party’s Future

July 4, 2025
BRILYN HOLLYHAND: Gen Z, It’s Time We Start Acting Like We Deserve The Freedom We Inherited

BRILYN HOLLYHAND: Gen Z, It’s Time We Start Acting Like We Deserve The Freedom We Inherited

July 4, 2025
Dem Eyes House Seat That Swung Nearly 20 Points To Trump

Dem Eyes House Seat That Swung Nearly 20 Points To Trump

July 4, 2025
Outfit Behind Slanted ‘Terrorism’ Studies Pleads For Private Donors After Trump Funding Cuts

Outfit Behind Slanted ‘Terrorism’ Studies Pleads For Private Donors After Trump Funding Cuts

July 4, 2025
Gas Crisis Looms Over California As Dems Continue To Impose Crippling Regs

Gas Crisis Looms Over California As Dems Continue To Impose Crippling Regs

July 4, 2025
  • Donald Trump
  • State of the Union
  • Elon Musk
  • Tariffs
  • Congress
  • Faith
  • Immigration
Saturday, July 5, 2025
  • Login
IJR
  • Politics
  • US News
  • Commentary
  • World News
  • Faith
  • Latest Polls
No Result
View All Result
IJR
No Result
View All Result
Home News

Sec Def Austin Unveils $400 Million Arms Package For Ukraine — But One Thing Is Missing

by Daily Caller News Foundation
October 21, 2024 at 11:14 am
in News, Wire
237 15
0
Sec Def Austin Unveils $400 Million Arms Package For Ukraine — But One Thing Is Missing
491
SHARES
1.4k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Daily Caller News Foundation

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin arrived in Ukraine but isn’t bringing the good news Kyiv wants to hear, as the country continues to struggle to hold the front line amid Russian advances.

Austin has been intimately involved over the last two years in overseeing U.S. military aid to Ukraine, of which there has been approximately $70 billion. The Defense Secretary touched down in Ukraine on Sunday in a show of continued support and announced a new $400 million arms package, but won’t be giving Kyiv what it really wants — the ability to use U.S.-provided long-range missiles to strike deep inside Russian territory, according to multiple reports.

The request to use the missiles for such a purpose has been something Ukraine has asked for for months; as Ukraine can’t produce such weapons, it is looking to the U.S. and Europe for help.

Austin arrived in Ukraine without signaling that the request would be filled, and that’s likely to leave Kyiv unsatisfied. The administration has been hesitant to allow Ukraine to use U.S. or European-provided missiles to conduct long-range attacks against Russia, in part because it could escalate the war and drag the U.S. further into the conflict.

“We think it is wrong that there are such steps,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in early September, according to The Washington Post. “We need to have this long-range capability, not only on the occupied territory of Ukraine but also on the Russian territory, so that Russia is motivated to seek peace.”

I’m back in Ukraine for the fourth time as Secretary of Defense, demonstrating that the United States, alongside the international community, continues to stand by Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/0gCwAqqEpK

— Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III (@SecDef) October 21, 2024

The idea has been frequently discussed between U.S. and Ukrainian officials but nothing has come to fruition. Austin has also previously said that he doesn’t think it would significantly improve Ukraine’s odds of victory, noting in an early September press conference that “there’s no one capability that will in and of itself be decisive in this campaign.”

Ukraine is also pressing the administration for NATO membership, but Austin had no new updates to give on that request either, according to reports. The Biden-Harris administration has said that Ukraine’s fate is eventually to join NATO but hasn’t provided a timeline for when.

However, the U.S. is providing Ukraine with $400 million worth of weapons systems, Austin announced on Monday, including munitions, armored vehicles and tanks, according to reports. The aid will certainly meet some of the needs of Ukraine’s military but is not as large as some of the prior multi-billion dollar packages.

“The United States understands the stakes here, Mr. President,” Austin told Ukrainian Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Monday, Reuters reported.

President Joe Biden’s options to help Ukraine are starting to run out as he prepares to leave office in January. Even with U.S. and European-provided military aid, it has done little more than help Ukraine maintain a defensive position against Russia, which has shown no signs of stopping its invasion campaign.

Russia launched sweeping missile and drone strikes against targets in Eastern Ukraine over the weekend ahead of Austin’s visit, according to Reuters. Ukrainian forces staged a successful incursion into regions in Western Russia at the end of the summer but Russian forces have started to retake some of the territory in recent weeks, The New York Times reported.

The odds that Biden can secure substantially more funding from Congress to aid Ukraine are slim; it was already difficult for the president to secure the last $60 billion aid package in April, as the sentiment among some lawmakers is that the administration doesn’t seem to have a plan to end the war and move Ukraine toward victory.

It will be either presidential candidates Donald Trump or Kamala Harris who will have to pick up where Biden left off. Harris would likely mirror Biden’s approach to the war and continue strong U.S. support for Ukraine’s military campaign, but some critics fear that she lacks the needed foreign policy wisdom to properly maneuver the conflict.

Trump has vowed to end the war before January if he’s elected in November, touting his ability to negotiate with both Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin. He has also signaled he may end military aid to Ukraine in favor of seeking a peaceful settlement between Kyiv and Moscow.

Austin on Monday dismissed ideas that U.S. support for Ukraine would end if Trump were elected in November.

“I’ve seen bipartisan support for Ukraine over the last 2-1/2 years, and I fully expect that we’ll continue to see the bipartisan support from Congress,” Austin said, according to Reuters.

(Featured Image Media Credit: Screen Capture/ABC 7 News)

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

Tags: DCNFforeign-affairsU.S. News
Share196Tweet123
Daily Caller News Foundation

Daily Caller News Foundation

Advertisements

Top Stories June 10th
Top Stories June 7th
Top Stories June 6th
Top Stories June 3rd
Top Stories May 30th
Top Stories May 29th
Top Stories May 24th
Top Stories May 23rd
Top Stories May 21st
Top Stories May 17th

Join Over 6M Subscribers

We’re organizing an online community to elevate trusted voices on all sides so that you can be fully informed.





IJR

    Copyright © 2024 IJR

Trusted Voices On All Sides

  • About Us
  • GDPR Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
  • Editorial Standards & Corrections Policy
  • Subscribe to IJR

Follow Us

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Politics
  • US News
  • Commentary
  • World News
  • Faith
  • Latest Polls

    Copyright © 2024 IJR

Top Stories June 10th Top Stories June 7th Top Stories June 6th Top Stories June 3rd Top Stories May 30th Top Stories May 29th Top Stories May 24th Top Stories May 23rd Top Stories May 21st Top Stories May 17th