The U.S. is set to provide Ukraine with an additional military aid package of $1.1 billion, the Biden administration said Wednesday. The 22nd and latest installment of assistance brings the total sum of American aid to more than $16.2 billion since the Russian invasion began in February. It follows referendums in four areas of Ukraine held by Russian-backed separatists to determine if the regions—Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson—should join Russia. The referendums have been roundly denounced by Kyiv and Western nations as Kremlin-rigged and illegal. “We will not be deterred from supporting Ukraine, we will continue to stand with the Ukrainian people, and provide them with the security assistance they need to defend themselves, for as long as it takes,” said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. The funding will be used to purchase weapons systems and equipment used to defend Ukraine in the long-term, according to the Associated Press. An announcement regarding a more immediate dispatch of weapons from the U.S. to Ukraine is expected early next week.
