New US Military Aid Package to Ukraine May Include Humvee Armoured Vehicles, Reports Suggest

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The United States Department of Defence is considering sending Humvee armoured vehicles to Ukraine alongside other sophisticated military equipment as part of a new aid package worth $750 million, The Washington Post reported on Wednesday, citing government sources.

According to the sources, the Biden administration intends to significantly scale up the amount of weapons it provides to Ukraine and, besides Humvees, it is considering supplying Kiev with Mi-17 helicopters, howitzer guns, coastal defence drones, and protective suits for personnel in the event of a chemical, biological, or nuclear attack.

Yet the officials noted that the final composition of the aid package remains unclear as it still requires approvals. Later, the unnamed source from the Pentagon told The Washington Post that "Russian-made helicopters would not be included".

U.S. Army soldier walks past a Humvee vehicle at the Karshi-Khanabad air base, Uzbekistan, in this Tuesday, May 28, 2002

© AP Photo / Bagila Bukharbaeva

Earlier reports of the US planning to allocate additional funds to supply Ukraine with weaponry were provided by Reuters, which said that Washington will unveil the package this Wednesday.

The anticipated aid package may bring the total amount of Washington's military assistance to Kiev since Russia launched its military operation in Ukraine up to $2.45 billion, including $1.7 billion already provided.

The Washington Post also reported, citing a senior defence official, that the Pentagon is finalising the weaponry's delivery under an $800 million security assistance package dated 16 March and a $100 million set of Javelin anti-tank missiles approved last week. The official stated that weaponry shipped to Ukraine gets into operation quickly, as "once they get into the transshipment sites, they are palletized and put on trucks, those trucks are picked up by Ukrainian armed forces and taken into Ukraine".

On 24 February, Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine after the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Lugansk appealed for help in defending themselves against Ukrainian forces. In response to Russia's operation, Western countries have rolled out a comprehensive sanctions campaign against Moscow and supplied lethal aid to the Ukrainian military.