The assistance was approved in late December but the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden only confirmed it on Jan. 19, without sharing any details.
Ukraine will get this package in addition to the $300 million in military aid that the U.S. also approved in December as part of the annual defense spending bill.
The State Department revealed the additional aid during Secretary of State Antony Blinken's Jan. 19 visit to Kyiv, where he met with President Volodymyr Zelensky and Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba. Blinken will now fly to Berlin to meet with the German leadership on Jan. 20, after which he will meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Geneva on Jan. 21.
At a press conference following the meeting, Blinken said that should Russia invade, Washington would increase military aid to help Ukraine defend itself. Kuleba said this would help deter Russian aggression.
The U.S. has been Ukraine's largest provider of military aid, giving $3 billion since Russia invaded in 2014.
Russia has amassed over 100,000 troops near Ukraine's borders, along with thousands of tanks, artillery systems and other technology. A larger invasion of Ukraine is a very real possibility, according to military intelligence assessments from Ukraine and the Western powers.
A large number of Russian troops have recently deployed to Belarus, supposedly for military exercises. This positioning will enable Russia to strike from multiple sides.
