U.S. President Joe Biden has announced $1 billion in new security aid and the deployment of longer-range weapons and drones to Ukraine, while expressing "unprecedented" support for Kyiv in its war with Russia.
But Biden's position remained unchanged over Kyiv's repeated appeals for a Western-imposed no-fly zone over the ex-Soviet state, which NATO has consistently rejected for fear of an escalation that could put the alliance on a warpath with Russia.
The amount includes $200 million allocated over the weekend and $800 million in new funds from an aid package approved by Congress last week.
"These are direct transfers of equipment from our Department of Defense to the Ukrainian military to help them as they fight against this invasion," said Biden.
The U.S. president also announced U.S. help for Ukraine to acquire "additional longer-range anti-aircraft systems."
Biden said Ukraine will receive an additional 800 Stinger anti-aircraft systems, 9,000 anti-tank weapons, 7,000 light weapons, and 20 million rounds of ammunition.
The United States will also be providing Ukraine with 100 drones -- or Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems -- which Biden said "demonstrates our commitment to sending our most cutting-edge systems to Ukraine for its defense."
U.S. Announces 'Unprecedented' New Weapons Aid To Ukraine
Flanked by Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks, U.S. President Joe Biden speaks about assistance the U.S. government is providing to Ukraine on March 16.