In a statement following a call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Biden also said the United States would provide $ 225 million in additional humanitarian aid as the West stepped up its efforts to help Kyiv withstand Russian aggression. is now in her fourth month. “I reaffirm my commitment that the United States will stand by Ukraine as it stands up to its democracy and upholds its sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of unprovoked Russian aggression,” Biden said. The commitment comes as Western Defense ministers meet in Brussels to discuss additional aid to Kyiv. Ukraine has repeatedly called for heavier armaments to repel Russian origins in the eastern Donbass region, with Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Anna Mayar saying this week that it had received only 10 percent of what was needed. Asked to comment, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said he had considered Ukraine’s demands “line by line” with Ukraine’s defense minister on Wednesday, adding that the United States was working hard to provide Ukraine with “everything it needs.” and everything that is relevant to this struggle. ” . He said he sympathized with Ukraine’s calls for more weapons. “When you fight, you never get full,” he said. “I certainly understand where the Ukrainians are coming from and we will fight hard to bring them everything they need.” The new weapons will come from $ 40 billion in additional aid pledged by the United States last month, including about half for military aid. Included are 18 shells, as well as ammunition and towing vehicles, additional ammunition for advanced missile systems known as imars and two Harpoon coastal defense systems. On Wednesday, Germany also promised three advanced missile systems, Slovakia provided Soviet-era helicopters and others donated artillery, including Canada, Poland and the Netherlands. Western officials have warned that the use of Western weapons on the battlefield is being slowed by the need to train Ukrainian troops in the use of state-of-the-art equipment. The United Kingdom’s defense minister, Ben Wallace, said on Wednesday that the British supply of long-range and multi-launcher missile systems was “imminent” and that London was also trying to send anti-aircraft missiles, such as Harpoons, to help Russian warships in the Black Sea. Speaking in Oslo, Wallace stressed that the need for Ukrainian fighters for the “very basic component of training” was the bottleneck, as they burned the Soviet weapons they were using and proceeded to the Western-provided NATO kit. An MQ-1C Gray Eagle drone © Jeon Heon-Kyun / EPA-EFE NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg reiterated this attention, saying: “There will be. . . “It takes some time to prepare the Ukrainians to use and operate these systems.” General Mark Milley, the Army Chief of Staff, said the United States was training “one squad at a time” on how to use the hammers, which will be deployed on the battlefield in the coming weeks and could have a significant impact. Together, the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany provide 10 multi-launcher missile systems and more than 100 munitions missiles in a matter of weeks, he said. Milley acknowledged that the Ukrainians were facing a tough battle in the Donbas, where “the numbers are clearly in favor of the Russians in terms of artillery.” However, he said the Ukrainians had better artillery techniques and that the introduction of additional precision firearms could have a significant impact. The U.S. has promised two Harpoon offshore defense systems that will also take some time to use because they require additional training and come from the U.S. defense industry. There are also concerns among some western countries that their own reserves are depleted. Wallace said there was “little left on our shelves” of some of the weapons, adding that the United Kingdom had recently bought 155mm projectiles from a third party, which it had refurbished and sent to Ukraine. “This will be the next step for many countries,” he added. Austin also said that the US should be careful not to deplete its own reserves by supplying Ukraine with as many weapons as it can. At the depot in the German city of Stuttgart, where Western allies are coordinating arms supplies to Kyiv, UK and US commanders said the weapons reached the front line in just 48 hours after being transported to the border and entered Ukrainian hands. After Moscow launched its offensive on Ukraine in February, the West initially supplied relatively simple weapons such as NLAW anti-tank missiles and Stinger anti-aircraft missiles. But since April, as Russia has focused on an artillery-dominated war in the eastern Donbass region, Ukraine’s need for more sophisticated equipment has increased. “We make it easy for them to learn and understand the new equipment we provide so they can use it as efficiently as possible,” Brigadier General Chris King, who is leading the UK’s contribution, told pool reporters. A repeated request from Ukraine is for more unmanned aircraft, of which there are stocks in the deep west. The United States has provided kamikaze Switchblade drones and is considering whether to supply high-end MQ1 Gray Eagles that can launch precision-guided missiles and provide detailed surveillance data. Among the issues are fears of escalating Russia and concerns about technology transfer as well as education.

“We can only take what we have, but in the case of drones that is not the point,” said Adam Smith, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, at a press conference Wednesday. Rear Admiral Richard Heinz, the senior officer in charge of arms procurement, told reporters in Stuttgart that he was “confident enough to respond quickly to Ukraine’s priorities.” Asked if he believed Ukraine would win the match, he replied: “The real question is what does it win? . . . But do I think Russia will take Ukraine? No.”