US defense chief vows continued aid to Ukraine; Congress stalls on funding bill
RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin vowed Tuesday that the U.S. will continue to support Ukraine’s war effort against Russia, even as the U.S. Congress remains stalled over funding to send additional weapons to the front.
“The United States will not let Ukraine fail,” said Austin, addressing more than 50 defense leaders from Europe and around the world who are meeting at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany. “This coalition will not let Ukraine fail. And the free world will not let Ukraine fail.”
The meeting comes a week after U.S. defense officials found and used $300 million in contract savings to fund a new package of military aid for Ukraine, pulling weapons from Pentagon stocks.
During the session, leaders from other nations promised new aid for Ukraine. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told reporters Germany will provide ammunition and armored and transport vehicles worth about $542 million.
“We are helping Ukraine with what it needs most in its defense against Russian aggression,” Pistorius said, adding that the aid includes 10,000 rounds of ammunition from the German Army, or Bundeswehr,
stocks that would be delivered to Ukraine very soon, as well as 100 armored vehicles for the infantry and 100 transport vehicles.
Asked whether he still sees the Americans as a reliable ally considering the ongoing delay in funding approval by Congress, Pistorius said, “I have no doubt about the reliability of the Americans.”
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Austin said “Ukraine’s survival is in danger” and that he leaves the meeting “fully determined to keep U.S. security assistance and ammunition flowing. That’s a matter of survival and sovereignty for Ukraine, and it’s a matter of honor and security for America.”
The $300 million U.S. aid package was the first tranche of weapons sent by the Biden administration since December, even as battlefield conditions in Ukraine have been getting increasingly dire.
The found money — which officials called a “one-time shot” — allowed the Defense Department to use presidential drawdown authority, or PDA, to pull weapons and equipment from Pentagon stocks and send them quickly to Ukraine. The funds are then used to buy replacement items to ensure the U.S. military is ready to fight and protect the homeland.
U.S. leaders had insisted for the past three months that they couldn’t take more weapons off the shelves because they have run out of money to replenish the stocks. Congress has been deadlocked for months over a new $95 billion supplemental bill that includes about $60 billion in aid for Ukraine.
U.S. officials maintain there is bipartisan support for the package, but a number of Republicans oppose it, and House Speaker Mike Johnson has refused to bring the bill to the House floor for a vote.