US flags extra military assistance to Ukraine
The Pentagon has announced it is sending an additional $US425 million ($A648 million) in military assistance to Ukraine as Kyiv prepares to face Russian forces augmented by more than 10,000 North Korean troops.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had said more aid was coming, and soon, during his visit to Kyiv last week.
This aid package includes weapons that will be pulled from existing US stockpiles, including air defence interceptors for National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems, munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems and 155 mm artillery, and armoured vehicles and anti-tank weapons.
Ukraine’s eastern cities continue to face an onslaught of Russian missile strikes, including one on Kharkiv by a 500-kilogram glide bomb.
The attack on Thursday hit an apartment complex, killing three and injuring scores.
In addition, Ukraine is facing new uncertainty as waves of North Korean soldiers deployed to Russia have arrived near Ukraine’s border and are preparing to join the fight against Ukrainian troops in coming days.
Russia has increasingly used powerful glide bombs to pummel Ukrainian positions along the 1000km line of contact and strike cities dozens of kilometres from the front line.
Kharkiv, a city of 1.1 million, is about 30 kilometres from the border.
The aid package announced on Friday brings the total amount of military assistance the US has provided Ukraine since Russia invaded in February 2022 to $US60.4 billion ($A92.0 billion).
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