US will provide Ukraine with Switchblade UAVs: US Defense Secretary
US Defense Secretary says Washington will provide Kiev with an additional $1 billion worth of weapons pledged by US President Joe Biden.
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A Switchblade unmanned aerial vehicle.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin affirmed Tuesday, that the United States will provide Ukraine with Switchblade drones equipped with anti-armor warheads.
During a House Armed Services Committee hearing, Austin said the Switchblade-600 and 300 drones will be supplied to Ukraine as quickly as possible.
Austin pointed out that before the start of the war in Ukraine, Washington supplied Kiev with $1 billion worth of weapons, adding that his country would now provide an additional $1 billion pledged by President Joe Biden.
The Secretary indicated that the US has accelerated the additional combat force of NATO's eastern wing and increased the number of soldiers in Europe to more than 100,000.
US' "unwavering" support for Ukraine
In a statement, Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby said Monday that Austin discussed in a phone conversation with his Ukrainian counterpart Alexey Reznik the US military support for Ukraine.
According to Kirby, Austin affirmed the US' "unwavering" support for Ukraine and discussed "the changing dynamics on the battlefield."
"Secretary Austin reiterated the U.S. commitment to the provision of defensive lethal assistance to bolster Ukraine’s capacity to defend itself," the Press Secretary mentioned in the statement.
$300 million Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative package
Kirby also indicated that "Secretary Austin highlighted the recently announced $300 million Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative package, bringing the total US security assistance commitment to more than $1.6 billion…"
The statement read that Austin "reiterated the US commitment to use every tool available to document and share information" in regard to the situation in Bucha and other Ukrainian regions.
It is noteworthy that Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby said that UAVs, Javelin anti-tank missile systems, and Stinger man-portable surface-to-air missile systems are among US arms supplies to Ukraine.
