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The Russian-flagged ship, the Sig, was hit by a drone carrying 450 kilograms (992 pounds) of TNT shortly before midnight, according to a Ukraine Security Service source. Ukrainian officials, however, said some crew were injured and that the tanker was carrying fuel for the Russian military. The strike on the Sig came just hours after Ukrainian sea drones targeted a major naval base in Novorossiysk, a coastal city on the Black Sea that is home to Russia’s largest port by volume of cargo handled. Ukraine has stepped up its attacks using unmanned aerial vehicles in recent weeks, hitting targets well within Russian territory, including in Moscow. The new generation of powerful sea drones, however, could open up a new front for Kyiv in the 18-month conflict.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Vasyl Maliuk, ” Maliuk Organizations: Ukraine CNN, TNT, Ukraine Security Service, Federal Agency for Marine, Transport, CNN, Sig, Kyiv, Russia’s Defense Ministry Ukrainian, Ukrainian Security Service, Service, Security Service Locations: Kyiv, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Novorossiysk, Russian, Moscow, Kerch, Russia, Crimea, Feodosia, ”, reticence

☆ U.S. to announce $1.3 bln in military aid for Ukraine -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Mike Stone | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, July 18 (Reuters) - The United States will announce a new pledge to buy $1.3 billion worth of military aid for Kyiv in its conflict with Russia in the coming days, two U.S. officials said. The previously unreported weapons package includes air defenses, counter-drone systems, exploding drones and ammunition, one of the U.S. officials said. The United States is using funds in its Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) program, which allow President Joe Biden's administration to buy weapons from industry rather than pull from U.S. weapons stocks. The Pentagon has provided more than $10.8 billion in security assistance for Ukraine under the USAI in fiscal 2023, in seven separate tranches. Reporting by Mike Stone in Washington Editing by Don Durfee and Angus MacSwanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Joe Biden's, AVEVEX, Australia's DroneShield, Washington, Mike Stone, Don Durfee, Angus MacSwan Organizations: Kyiv, Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, L3Harris Technologies, AeroVironment Inc, U.S . Department, Ukraine Defense Contact, Pentagon, Thomson Locations: United, Russia, United States, Ukraine, U.S, Kyiv, California, Washington

"Today there are security guarantees for Ukraine on the way to NATO," he said. "The Ukraine delegation is bringing home a significant security victory for Ukraine." Speaking earlier alongside Zelenskiy, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Ukraine was closer to the alliance than ever before, and brushed aside new warnings from Russia about the consequences of supporting Ukraine. The security assurances for Ukraine had to be "credible", he said, in order to deter Russia from future attacks. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was "potentially very dangerous" for the West to give Ukraine security guarantees.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Joe Biden, we're, Biden, Zelenskiy, Jens Stoltenberg, Rishi Sunak, Yves Herman, Stoltenberg, Dmitry Peskov, Dmitry Medvedev, Vladimir Putin, John Irish, Steve Holland, Justyna Pawlak, Sabine Siebold, Andrew Gray, Max Hunder, Gabriela Baczynska, Matthias Williams, Alex Richardson, William Maclean Organizations: Ukraine Ukrainian, Ukraine, NATO, Kyiv, U.S, British, REUTERS, Zelenskiy, Twitter, Thomson Locations: United States, Ukraine, U.S, VILNIUS, Russia, Russian, Germany, Japan, France, Canada, Italy, Britain, Zelenskiy, Vilnius, Lithuania, Budapest, Moscow, Netherlands, NATO, Kyiv, Soviet Union, Washington, Berlin, Europe

Zelenskiy said: "Today there are security guarantees for Ukraine on the way to NATO...that shall be further extended through arrangements with our key partners. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the G7 move misguided and "potentially very dangerous" for the West to give Ukraine security guarantees, which it said would infringe on Russia's own security. The declaration said the G7 nations would begin bilateral talks with Ukraine immediately. "We will work with Ukraine on an enhanced package of security commitments and arrangements in case of future aggression to enable Ukraine to defend its territory and sovereignty," the G7 said. Germany has already said that it would initially provide 12 billion euros in military support for Ukraine through 2032, including 3.2 billion euros for 2023.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Joe Biden, Zelenskiy, Dmitry Peskov, Ben Wallace, Andrew Gray, Steve Holland, Sabine Siebold, Alex Richardson, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: NATO, REUTERS, Kremlin, Wednesday, Ukraine, Soviet Union, European Union, White, U.S, Kyiv, Israel, British, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Vilnius, Lithuania, VILNIUS, Russia, Moscow, Britain, France, Germany, United States, Soviet, Japan, Canada, Italy, Washington, Israel, Kyiv

☆ Zelensky gets a NATO boost and rockstar's welcome in Vilnius
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

But while Ukraine’s NATO allies reaffirmed their support for Kyiv’s bid for membership, they remained vague about the timing. “Ukraine’s future is in NATO,” the leaders of the alliance declared in the summit’s final communique. This will change Ukraine’s membership path from a two-step process to a one-step process,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltengberg told reporters on Tuesday. The process can be a burdensome and lengthy and its removal could significantly streamline Ukraine’s membership bid once it is formally invited to apply. It seems there is no readiness neither to invite Ukraine to NATO nor to make it a member of the Alliance,” Zelensky said.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, –, Zelensky, ”, Jens Stoltengberg, Stoltenberg, ” Biden, Susan Walsh, “, Joe Biden, “ We’re, We’re, Ben Wallace, Wallace, General, Biden, ” Zelensky, Odd Anderson, Gitanas Nauseda, – Zelensky, Ukraine “, Lenin Organizations: CNN, NATO, AP NATO, United Nations, OSCE, CNN Sunday, Alliance, Getty, Lithuanian, Lukiskes, “ Locations: Vilnius, Ukraine, Russia, ” Ukraine, “, Crimea, Kyiv, NATO, Vilnius –, Lithuania, Soviet Union, Bakhmut, Russian, Ukrainian

☆ The US should be very careful about what it promises to do for Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Daniel L. Davis | Defense Priorities | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

US shouldn't support or extend a security guarantee — through NATO or bilaterally — to Ukraine. Doing so would endanger US national security and increase the odds of a direct clash with Russia. I mean, miles and miles and miles deep." Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty ImagesI concur with that assessment, and the likelihood of a stalemate should end any consideration of providing Ukraine security guarantees. Plainly stated, Russian conventional forces do not pose a risk to American national security.

Persons: Daniel L, Davis, Oleksii Reznikov, Volodymyr Zelensky, Diego Herrera Carcedo, John Kirby, Kirby, —, Joe Biden, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Kent Nishimura, Prigozhin's Organizations: NATO, Defense, US, Service, Ukraine Defense, American, Anadolu Agency, Getty, New York Times, National Security, House, Los Angeles Times, Ukraine, US Army Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Wall, Silicon, Vilnius, United States, —, Bakhmut, Ukrainian, Russian, NATO, Kyiv, America

☆ What would happen if Ukraine joined NATO?
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Following are the steps that Ukraine has taken on its way to NATO membership, a possible compromise over the next steps - and Russia's view of the developments. AN UNMAPPED PATHIn 2008, NATO agreed at a Bucharest summit that Ukraine - which was part of the Moscow-ruled Soviet Union until its 1991 demise - could eventually join the alliance. Moscow then illegally annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and backed separatist proxies in eastern Ukraine. It is cited as one of the main reasons why Ukraine cannot join NATO while in conflict with Russia, as this might immediately draw the alliance into an active war. Moscow has said it would cause problems for many years to come if Ukraine joined NATO and has warned of an unspecified response to ensure its security.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Jens Stoltenberg, Stoltenberg, Ukraine's, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Sabine Siebold, Philippa Fletcher Organizations: NATO, Russia, Kyiv, Atlantic Treaty Organization, Soviet Union, West, NATO's, Kremlin, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS, Ukraine, Moscow, Washington, London, Russia, Vilnius, United States, Germany, Russian, Russia's, Bucharest, Soviet, Crimea, Kyiv, NATO, Europe, Finland, Sweden, Britain, NATO's Washington Treaty

☆ The Pentagon will pay for SpaceX's Starlink in Ukraine months after Elon Musk complained and asked it to pick up the bill
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Pentagon announced Thursday it will pay SpaceX for Ukraine to use its Starlink service, per Bloomberg. It comes after Elon Musk complained that donated terminals were costing his company too much money. The European Union had previously considered stepping in too, over concerns Musk could stop the vital service on a whim. But in October, Musk grew concerned over how much the operation was costing SpaceX, which had donated Starlink units to Ukraine. The billionaire said "only a small percentage" of Starlink terminals had been paid for, and the cost would exceed $100 million by the end of 2022.

Persons: Elon Musk, —, Starlink, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Musk, SpaceX Organizations: Pentagon, SpaceX, Bloomberg, European Union, Service, Wired, CNN, Politico, Department of Defense, Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, Financial Times Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Union, Ukrainian

☆ Ukraine war live updates: Russian strike on Kyiv kills 3, including a child; NATO chief calls for Ukraine security guarantees
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Some 40 European officials are convening in Bulboaca, Moldova, just 12 miles from the Ukrainian border, for a security conference and in a show of support for both Eastern European countries ahead of Ukraine's anticipated counteroffensive against Russia. NATO's Airborne Warning and Control Systems surveillance aircraft will be monitoring Moldova's skies for the duration of the event, the alliance said in a statement, highlighting the security risk of holding such a high-profile summit — with dozens of EU and NATO officials attending — in that particular location. Russia continued its intense missile barrage on Kyiv, which killed three people — an 11-year-old girl, her mother, and another woman — overnight. Ukraine's Air Force said it shot down all 10 Russian missiles, but that falling debris from the interceptions caused the deaths and injuries. It was the 18th Russian attack on the Ukrainian capital since the start of May.

Persons: Ukraine's Organizations: Eastern, Control Systems, NATO, Ukraine's Air Force Locations: Bulboaca, Moldova, Ukrainian, Russia, EU, Russian

☆ U.S. to announce $1.2 bln in military aid for Ukraine -source
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Mike Stone | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, May 8 (Reuters) - The United States plans as soon as Tuesday to announce a new $1.2 billion military aid package for Ukraine that will include air defense systems, ammunition and funds for training, a U.S. official said. Ukraine will receive 155-mm Howitzer ammunition, counter-drone ammunition, and funding for satellite imagery as well as various types of training, said the official. The package is paid from Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) funding which allows President Joe Biden's administration to buy weapons from industry rather than pull from U.S. weapons stocks. However, members of both parties insist they support continued aid for Ukraine including top Republicans House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Mitch McConnell, the top Republican in the Senate. Reporting by Mike Stone; Editing by Michael PerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

CNN —The US has announced a $1.2 billion aid package to Ukraine intended to “bolster its air defenses” and “sustain its artillery ammunition needs,” with Ukraine’s counteroffensive against Russian forces looming. Instead of supplying Ukraine with the weapons it currently needs, USAI packages are intended to create a medium- and long-term supply for Ukraine. With the new package announcement, the US has committed $37.6 billion in military aid to Ukraine since the beginning of the Biden administration, including $36.9 billion since the beginning of the war in February 2022. Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said in late April that the Ukrainian military is almost finished preparing for its counteroffensive against Russian forces. But even after the Ukrainian counteroffensive begins, the US will continue to send military aid to Ukraine, according to a US military official, both to sustain Ukraine’s military force against dug-in Russian troops and to provide new equipment.

☆ Ukraine's getting new gun trucks and rockets to fight off Russia's exploding drones, US official says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Kyiv is slated to get several 30 mm gun trucks and mobile laser-guided rocket systems. These weapons are part of a new $2.6 billion security package announced by the Pentagon. Though the gun trucks are new, truck-mounted weaponry will not be a ground-breaking addition to Ukraine's arsenal of American weapon systems. Ukraine's military said in a daily update on Wednesday that Russian forces launched 17 Shahed-136 drones in an attack and that 14 of them were shot down by Kyiv's air defenses. The US official said that this week's new security package "includes important capabilities for air defense and to counter Russian unmanned aerial systems."

☆ US pledges $2.6 billion more in weapons aid to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Mike Stone | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Tuesday told the U.S. National Governors Association that the United States could protect its values by helping Ukraine. The weapons aid package was comprised of $2.1 billion from Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) funding which allows President Joe Biden's administration to buy weapons from industry rather than from U.S. weapons stocks. That segment of the package included a half a dozen types of munitions, including munitions for Patriot air defense systems, tank munitions, and High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS). The package announced on Tuesday includes 61 heavy fuel tankers and recovery vehicles to help disabled heavy equipment like tanks. The U.S. has now pledged more than $35.2 billion worth of security assistance to Ukraine since the Feb. 24, 2022, invasion.

☆ Munitions, anti-tank rockets in next $2.6 bln US pledge for Ukraine -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Mike Stone | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Military aid, delivered as part of the United States of America's security assistance to Ukraine, is unloaded from a plane at the Boryspil International Airport outside Kyiv, Ukraine February 11, 2022. Also slated for inclusion were precision aerial munitions, bridging equipment Ukraine would use to assault Russian positions, recovery vehicles to help disabled heavy equipment like tanks and additional rounds for NASAMS air defenses that the U.S. and allies have given to Kyiv. The aid was comprised of $2.1 billion in weapons aid coming from Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) funding that allows President Joe Biden's administration to buy weapons from industry rather than from U.S. weapons stocks. The U.S. has now pledged more then $30 billion worth of security assistance to Ukraine since the invasion. Reporting by Mike Stone in Washington; Editing by Bill BerkrotOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Ukraine to receive Abrams tanks from US as soon as this fall -officials
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Mike Stone | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

In January, the U.S. pledged to supply Ukraine with 31 advanced M1A2 Abrams tanks after months of shunning the idea of deploying the difficult-to-maintain tanks to Ukraine, which was invaded by Russia in February 2022. The new plan would give Ukraine the M1A1 SA Abrams tank variant, which can run on diesel fuel like the majority of the Ukrainian fleet, one of the officials said. US soldiers stand with Polish and US flags near M1/A2 Abrams tank outside a hall of 30th International Defence Industry Exhibition in Kielce, Poland September 5, 2022. The General Dynamics Corp (GD.N) production line is currently completing about 12 Abrams tanks a month. The M1A2 tanks would be sourced from government owned "hulls" and refurbished specifically for Ukraine, Ryder said.

☆ U.S. Offers $2 Billion in Weapons to Ukraine on One-Year Anniversary of War
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Gordon Lubold | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON—The Pentagon announced another $2 billion in long-term military support for Ukraine, a package that includes additional high-demand ammunition, as well as new kinds of drones, counterdrone systems and other types of weaponry. Unlike some assistance packages that draw directly from American stocks, the $2 billion in aid announced Friday—the anniversary of Russia’s invasion a year ago—will come from what’s called the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which funds defense manufacturing for Ukraine’s long-term needs.

☆ U.S. unveils $2 billion in aid for Ukraine, sanctions and tariff hikes on Russia a year after invasion
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Emma Kinery | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON – The United States authorized $2 billion in aid to Ukraine on the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion Friday, and ramped up sanctions and tariffs on Moscow as it tries to bolster Kyiv's war effort. President Joe Biden met virtually with leaders of the G-7 and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday morning to mark the occasion, one year after the group first met to discuss aid. The Biden administration also announced it would sanction more than 200 individuals and entities tied to the Russian war effort, including by targeting the country's metals and mining sector. Biden has been adamant about showing the U.S.'s support for Ukraine as the war drags on into its second year. Earlier this month, Ukraine's prosecutor general, Andriy Kostin, said that regional authorities have logged more than 65,000 Russian war crimes since Moscow invaded Ukraine nearly a year ago.

The United States joined with G7 allies with plans to impose sanctions that will target 200 individuals and entities and a dozen Russian financial institutions. They planned to form an "Enforcement Coordination Mechanism," at first chaired by the United States, to counter Russian efforts to circumvent the sanctions. The sanctions are aimed at targets in Russia and "third-country actors" across Europe, Asia and the Middle East that are supporting Russia's war effort, the White House said in a fact sheet. "We will sanction additional actors tied to Russia's defense and technology industry, including those responsible for backfilling Russian stocks of sanctioned items or enabling Russian sanctions evasion," it said. Biden was also set to sign proclamations to raise tariffs on Russian products imported to the United States.

[1/2] Oleksiy Danilov, Secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defence Council, speaks with Reuters during an interview, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 7, 2023. "Attempts at an offensive in either the Kharkiv or Zaporizhzhia direction will of course be made," he said, speaking in his office in the capital, Kyiv. Russian forces have been trying to encircle and capture Bakhmut for weeks at a steep cost. Danilov said Kyiv expected Russia to seek to achieve demonstrable results around the one-year anniversary of its full-scale invasion on Feb. 24. Earlier, Ukrainian officials said Russian forces could try to attack from Moscow's ally Belarus to the northwest.

☆ Longer-range rockets included in $2 bln U.S. pledge for Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Mike Stone | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

USAI stands for Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI). Friday's aid pledge opens the door to many more deliveries of the Ground Launched Small Diameter Bombs (GLSDB). When the new rockets arrive, it will mark the first time Ukraine has seen its rocket range grow exponentially since U.S. furnished HIMARS in late-June 2022. HIMARS have a 77 km (48 mile) range and were instrumental in Ukraine's counter offensive against Russian forces, which invaded on Feb. 24, 2022. Reuters was first to report on a Boeing Co (BA.N) proposal to field GLSDB for Ukraine in November.

☆ Ukraine security forces smash prostitution ring run by migration officials
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 1 (Reuters) - Ukraine's SBU security service said on Wednesday it had broken up a prostitution ring run by immigration officials, part of a drive to crush corrupt practices and meet Western standards on eliminating graft. The SBU said the ring had been headed by officials of the Migration Department of the national police, normally responsible for safeguarding the interests of displaced people. "These senior officials oversaw a broad 'protection' scheme for prostitution in Kyiv and in other regions," the SBU statement said. In a nightly video address, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy thanked the security services for their "quick reaction to these shameful developments". Russia's invasion prompted more than 7 million people to leave Ukraine, according to U.N. figures, though nearly half subsequently returned home.

☆ U.S. readies $2 billion-plus Ukraine aid package with longer-range weapons -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Mike Stone | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The aid is expected to be announced as soon as this week, the officials said. It is also expected to include support equipment for Patriot air defense systems, precision-guided munitions and Javelin anti-tank weapons, they added. At the time it was expected GLSDB could be in Ukraine by spring. That aid was expected to include mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles (MRAPs), guided multiple launch rocket systems (GMLRS) and ammunition. The U.S. has sent approximately $27.2 billion worth of security assistance to Ukraine since Russia's February 2022 invasion.

The decisions by Washington and Berlin come as the Western allies help Ukraine prepare for a possible spring counter-offensive to try to drive Russia out of territory it has seized. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said any Abrams shipments would be a waste of money as they "burn" like other tanks in Ukraine. The total cost of a single Abrams tanks can vary, and can be over $10 million per tanks when including training and sustainment. "I am certain that many experts understand the absurdity of this idea," the Kremlin's Peskov said about the Abrams tanks. "The United States was willing to make a significant commitment to assist them in making theirs," the source said.

☆ U.S. will send Abrams tanks to Ukraine ahead of expected Russian offensive
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Amanda Macias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON – The Biden administration announced Wednesday it will equip Ukraine with the mighty M1A1 Abrams tank, a key reversal in the West's effort to arm Kyiv as it prepares for a fresh Russian offensive. The 31 M1A1 Abrams tanks, which amount to one Ukrainian tank battalion, will expand on the more than $26 billion the U.S. has committed to Kyiv's fight since Russia invaded nearly a year ago. The U.S. will also provide eight M88 recovery vehicles that support the M1A1 Abrams. The Biden administration will also send more than 500 armored vehicles of various types to bolster Ukraine's military. It will "take some time" for the tanks to be delivered to Ukraine, a senior Biden administration official said Wednesday.

☆ Ukraine is getting a new heavy-duty armored vehicle to haul its damaged tanks off the battlefield, US officials say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Christopher Woody | Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

US officials announced on Wednesday that US-made Abrams tanks would be sent to Ukraine. Ukraine will receive other armored vehicles, including a US-made vehicle designed to haul others off the battlefield. Along with the Abrams, the US will send another armored vehicle designed to haul tanks and other vehicles off the battlefield. The US announcement that it would send Abrams tanks to Ukraine comes after the US and other European partners announced that they would be sending other armored vehicles to Ukraine in the near future. This opened the door for other countries to send armored combat vehicles to Kyiv.

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