United States and the Russian invasion of Ukraine

US President Joe Biden gives his remarks on the Russian invasion of Ukraine

The United States has supported Ukraine during the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. After it began on 24 February 2022, President Joe Biden condemned the invasion, provided military, financial and humanitarian aid to Ukraine, and imposed sanctions against Russia and Belarus.[1][2]

The United States has provided more than half of all military aid to Ukraine, and has set aside $175 billion to help the country.[3] Most of this money stays in the US economy and supports US industries, subsidizing the production of weapons and military equipment in at least 71 American cities.[3][4] There are several ways by which the US provides military and financial aid to Ukraine. Most of the military aid is old American weaponry and equipment from US reserve stockpiles; Presidential Drawdown Authority (PDA) allows the president to order the sending of this weaponry. American military contractors are then funded to make weapons to re-fill stockpiles.[4] The Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) funds the US Department of Defense to help train and advise the Ukrainian military, as well as to procure weaponry and equipment.[4] The State Department's Foreign Military Financing (FMF) program helps allies like Ukraine buy weaponry and equipment from American manufacturers.[4] Lastly, the US also sends some direct financial aid to the Ukrainian government through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).[4]

The Biden administration also imposed limits on the supply and use of some American weapons. For more than two years, it forbade Ukraine to fire American weapons, like the Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS), at military targets inside Russia.[4] From June 2024, it allowed Ukraine to strike inside Russia with US-supplied weapons, but only near the border in self-defense.[5]

  1. ^ Galston, William A. (2022-03-03). "The invasion of Ukraine unites a divided America". Brookings. Retrieved 2022-03-23.
  2. ^ Burch, Audra D. S.; Medina, Jennifer; Ulloa, Jazmine; King, Maya (2022-03-16). "Russia's Attack Rallies a Divided Nation: The United States". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-03-23.
  3. ^ a b "How Much U.S. Aid Is Going to Ukraine?". Council on Foreign Relations. September 27, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "How America's Aid to Ukraine Actually Works". Lawfare. July 16, 2024.
  5. ^ "The West finally allowed Ukraine to strike back at Russia — and it seems to be working". CNN. 15 July 2024.