Ukraine-Russia latest: US pledges $500m in weapons and ammunition for Kyiv to fight Putin’s forces
Nearly £3.25bn in US funds earmarked by the Joe Biden administration for Ukraine may not be delivered before Donal Trump returns to the White House
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Your support makes all the difference.The US will send half a billion dollars in military aid to Ukraine ahead of US president-elect Donald Trump’s return to the White House, the country’s top diplomat has announced.
Speaking during the 25th and possibly final meeting of Ukraine’s western backers at the Ramstein air base in Germany, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said Washington would supply one more trove of military support.
The $500m (£406m) package includes air defence missiles, air-to-ground munitions and support equipment for F-16 fighter jets. The US has sent roughly £50 billion in military aid to Ukraine since the full-scale invasion nearly three years ago.
The announcement, however, suggests that the remaining $3.8bn of the funds set aside for Ukraine by the Joe Biden administration will remain unused ahead of Mr Trump’s return, despite previous commitments to use all the money.
Meanwhile, Russia launched dozens of glide bombs across Ukraine over the last 24 hours, Ukraine’s military reported in its latest update, as the casualty toll from an attack on civilian-populated Zaporizhzhia reached 126.
The Ukrainian general staff said Russia had launched 62 glide bomb attacks on Wednesday. The munitions, nicknamed “building-destroyers”, can carry warheads weighing up to 3 tonnes and blow holes deeper than bomb shelters.
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In their final meeting, Zelenskyy and Austin say military aid to Ukraine must continue under Trump
In their final meeting, Zelenskyy and Austin say military aid to Ukraine must continue under Trump
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and U_S_ Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin used their final meeting in Germany to press the incoming Trump administration to not give up on Kyiv’s fight, warning that to cease military support now “will only invite more aggression, chaos and war.”
Russia dropped more than 50,000 glide bomb on Ukraine since Feb 22, says Kyiv
Russia has launched over 51,000 of guided aerial bombs on Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion, Ukraine‘s air force said on Thursday.
About 40,000 of the total number was used in 2024, it said on Telegram.
In pictures: Zelensky attends 25th Ramstein meeting in Germany
German defence minister: will consider changing Ramstein format if US withdraws
German defence minister Boris Pistorius has said that a regular gathering of allies aimed at speeding up and synchronising arms deliveries to Ukraine was best kept under US leadership, with an eye to the new Trump administration.
“And if those in the United States now decide not to maintain this format any longer, then we will have to make our own decisions,” said Pistorius at the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG).
He added that it was too early to speculate on what could happen to the format after US President-elect Donald Trump takes office on 20 January.
The group, comprised of about 50 allies who usually meet every few months at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, was started in 2022 by outgoing US defense secretary Lloyd Austin.
Pistorius said Germany would be providing further guided missiles to Ukraine for the IRIS-T systems, initially intended for the German army, at short notice, and would stick to its schedule for delivering the systems it promised.
Slovakia will adopt measures against Ukraine if gas transit problem not solved, PM Fico says
Slovakia will adopt harsh reciprocal measures against Ukraine if the problem with halted gas transit through the country is not solved, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said on Thursday after talks with EU energy commissioner Dan Jorgensen.
Fico has accused Kyiv of damaging Slovakia by not extending a gas transit deal with Russia to carry gas through Ukraine, and has threatened to retaliate by cutting emergency electricity supplies to Ukraine or reducing aid for refugees.
In pictures: More than 100 wounded or killed in Russian attack on Zaporizhzhia
Europe expects Trump to stay engaged with Ukraine, says Meloni
Europe expects US president-elect Donald Trump to continue supporting Ukraine and strike a balance between diplomacy with and deterrence against Russia, Italy’s prime minister Giorgia Meloni has claimed.
Ms Meloni says she does not expect Mr Trump to disengage from Ukraine despite concerns he could sacrifice Ukrainian interests to push for an end to its war with Russia.
But she added that security guarantees are needed for Ukraine to prevent another Russian invasion.
Biden set to push new Russia sanctions before Trump era begins
President Joe Biden is expected to unveil new sanctions targeting Russia’s economy this week, according to a US official, as part of measures to bolster Kyiv’s war effort against Moscow before Donald Trump takes office.
The steps come as the Biden administration was also readying $500 million (£407m) in new military aid for Ukraine on Thursday that was set to include air defense missiles, air-to-ground munitions and support equipment for F-16 fighter jets, a US official who declined to be named said.
President-elect Donald Trump’s return to the White House on 20 January has sparked hope of a diplomatic resolution to end Moscow’s invasion but also fears in Kyiv that a quick peace could come at a high price.
Advisers to Trump have floated proposals to end the Ukraine war that would effectively cede large parts of the country to Russia for the foreseeable future.
Biden aides say they want to put Ukraine in the strongest position on the battlefield to give them leverage for possible negotiations with Russia this year.
There were no immediate details on the sanctions Biden would levy in his final days but Biden aides are briefing Trump’s aides on the steps they are taking, the official said.
Zelensky says allies’ deployment in Ukraine one of best ways to bring peace closer
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that the potential deployment of partners’ contingent in Ukraine “is one of the best instruments” to force Russia into peace.
“Let’s be more practical in making it possible,” he said in an address to allies at the Ramstein military base in Germany.
French president Emmanuel Macron remains the only European leader to have spoken openly about the possibility of Paris’ troops being sent to Ukraine.
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