US To Provide Ukraine with $125 Million in "Lethal" Military Aid

The Pentagon yesterday announced a $125 million package for US military aid to Ukraine “that includes training, equipment, and advisory efforts to help Ukraine’s forces preserve the country’s territorial integrity, secure its borders, and improve interoperability with NATO,” reports a Pentagon press release. “This action reaffirms the U.S. commitment to providing defensive lethal weapons to enable Ukraine to more effectively defend itself against Russian aggression.” The package includes a pair of 85-foot-long Mark VI patrol boats (a class of vessels that the US Navy is divesting itself of, having decided they would be useless in a great power war with Russia and/or China), which will bring Ukraine’s fleet up to eight in total. “The package also includes capabilities to enhance the lethality, command and control, and situational awareness of Ukraine’s forces through the provision of additional counter-artillery radars and tactical equipment; continued support for a satellite imagery and analysis capability; and equipment to support military medical treatment and combat evacuation procedures,” the release says.