Blinken says US will give Ukraine $2 billion in military financing

He says that the support for Ukraine comes at a "critical time" as the country faces a renewed Russian onslaught

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba hold a joint press conference, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine, May 15, 2024. REUTERS/Alina Smutko

The United States will provide Ukraine with $2 billion in foreign military financing, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday at a joint press conference in Kyiv alongside Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.

"We will provide an additional $2 billion dollars in foreign military financing for Ukraine," Blinken said. "We put this together in a first-of-its-kind defence enterprise fund."

The fund will provide weapons for Ukraine today, invest in its defence industrial base and finance military equipment purchases from other countries, he said.

A US official said $1.6 billion of the $2 billion was earmarked in the supplemental funding bill signed by US President Joe Biden last month and the remaining $400 million is from existing foreign military financing funds that had not yet been allocated.

Blinken said that the support for Ukraine comes at a "critical time" as the country faces a renewed Russian onslaught.