US President Joe Biden has signed legislation facilitating the delivery of armaments to Ukraine and other Eastern European countries, informs news agency MIA.
“I’m signing a bill that provides another important tool in our efforts to support the government of Ukraine and the Ukrainian people in their fight to defend their country and their democracy against [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s brutal war. And it is brutal,” Biden said.
“The cost of the fight is not cheap, but caving to aggression is even more costly,” Biden added. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked the US for supporting his country’s “fight for our freedom and future,” speaking of an “historic step.”
The lend-lease act for Ukraine authorizes the Biden administration to lend or lease military equipment to Ukraine and other Eastern European countries affected by the conflict to lend or lease military equipment through fiscal year 2023 and exempt the administration from certain provisions that usually apply.
The US Congress passed a similar lend-lease act in 1941 during World War II.
Since the start of the war, the US has pledged or already delivered to Ukraine weapons and ammunition worth more than $3.7 billion.
The US Congress passed a budget in March setting aside $13.6 billion in humanitarian, economic and military aid for Ukraine until the end of September Biden has also asked Congress to approve a further $33 billion dollars for the embattled country, including $20 billion for military aid.
