US Announces IDR 7.9 Trillion Military Aid Package To Ukraine Ahead Of Biden Lengser

US Marines use a high mobility artillery rocket system or HIMARS. (Lauren Whitney-defenseimagery.mil.-commons.wikimedia.org)

JAKARTA - The United States (US) at the end of President Joe Biden's leadership announced a package of military aid or weapons for Ukraine worth 500 million US dollars or around IDR 7.9 trillion on Thursday 12 December local time.

Citing Reuters, Friday, December 13, White House spokesman John Kirby stressed that the US had confirmed that it would continue to provide additional military aid packages for Ukraine fighting against Russia until the end of the Biden Administration.

The Rp7.9 trillion military aid package for Ukraine includes ammunition for high-mobility artillery or HIMARS rocket systems, and high-speed anti-radiation missiles or HARMs.

After that, Biden could still send military aid to Ukraine without congressional approval before officially taking to the throne in January 2025.

So far, the available military aid packages are worth 5.6 billion US dollars or Rp. 89.5 trillion through US executive funding aka the Presidential Drawdown Authority (PDA).

The PDA is a package of military aid containing weapons of war that is stock in US warehouses.

The value of the military aid announced Thursday for Ukraine was originally delivered on December 3 by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken of USD 725 million.

Biden, who will soon step down to be replaced by US President-elect Donald Trump, continues to seek to distribute military aid to ensure Ukraine has the ability to defend itself from Russian attacks.

Meanwhile, Russia in its military operations has now taken control of villages after villages in eastern Ukraine. The ground attack was part of Russia's efforts to seize the Donbas industrial area.

On the one hand, Ukraine's energy network is targeted by Russian airstrikes ahead of the country's winter.