Reuters: Biden administration delayed arms supplies to Ukraine in 2024
Pravda Ukraine
The administration of US President Joe Biden delayed decisions on key arms supplies to Ukraine in the final year of its term due to fears of escalation with Russia and administrative confusion.
Source: Reuters, as reported by European Pravda
Details: Reuters reveal that the most significant delays in US arms shipments to Ukraine occurred during the months when Congress stalled the approval of US$60 billion in support for US allies.
These delays were also attributed to “internal debates over escalation risks with Russia, as well as concerns over whether the U.S. stockpile was sufficient”.
The situation was further complicated by a “chaotic weapons-tracking system”, with different US agencies having conflicting methods for determining whether a shipment had actually reached Ukraine.
Over 40 Ukrainian and American sources interviewed by Reuters stated that delays in arms supplies persisted even after Congress approved military aid funds in April 2024.
Reuters analysis shows that between April and September 2024, the Biden administration authorised an average of around US$558 million in military aid to Ukraine.
This figure surged to US$1.1 billion monthly following Donald Trump’s election victory, although it still matched the monthly average for the first two years of the full-scale war.
Four Reuters sources indicated that by November 2024, Ukraine had only received about half the value of the promised military aid from US stockpiles for that year.
Furthermore, by early December 2024, Ukraine had obtained only about 30% of the American armoured vehicles it had been promised.
An anonymous former Biden administration official denied in comments to Reuters that the US had provided aid too slowly or in limited amounts. The official stated that without Washington’s support, Russia could have seized even more Ukrainian territory.
Meanwhile, Keith Kellogg, Trump’s special envoy for Russia and Ukraine, criticised the Biden administration’s approach, stating that aid was not “in the right numbers”.
Quote from Kellogg: “They [weapons] weren’t in the right time. The Biden administration had a fear of escalation. My belief is that great powers do not fear escalation.”
Background: Earlier, US President Donald Trump hinted at the possibility of purchasing American arms for Ukraine using funds from frozen Russian assets.
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