Ambassador: US to allocate $138 million for Ukrainian air defense system upgrades

U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink in Kyiv on Jan. 12, 2024. (Yevhen Kotenko/ Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images)

The U.S. signed an agreement to provide Ukraine with $138 million in critical air defense modernization, U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink said on April 11.

The State Department approved an urgent $138 million foreign military sales package for Ukraine a few days ago, enabling essential repairs and the procurement of spare parts necessary for Hawk missile systems.

"This funding will help keep Ukraine’s air defenses operating in the face of Russia’s relentless attacks on the energy grid and the Ukrainian people," Brink wrote on X.

Ukraine faces an ongoing ammunition shortage, with the country in dire need of shells and missiles while Russian forces have intensified their attacks during the spring, mainly targeting energy and civilian infrastructure.

Delays in U.S. assistance of roughly $60 billion have already had a direct impact on the battlefield, contributing to the loss of the key front-line city of Avdiivka.

Top Republican officials reportedly said that a vote on the aid for Ukraine in Congress might be still weeks away despite Johnson's assertion on April 1 that it would be held "right after Easter."

President Volodymyr Zelensky said on April 7 that "Ukraine will lose the war" if the U.S. Congress fails to approve military aid to Kyiv.

Read also: US general says Ukraine will soon run out of shells, anti-air missiles without US aid