Washington has given Ukraine small arms and ammunition that were seized while being sent from Iranian forces to Tehran-backed rebels in Yemen, the US military said Tuesday.
The transfer last week came as Ukraine suffers from significant shortages of ammunition and US Republican lawmakers block new aid, but it does not address Kyiv's need for key items such as artillery and air defense munitions.
"The US government transferred over 5,000 AK-47s, machine guns, sniper rifles, RPG-7s and over 500,000 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition to the Ukrainian armed forces" on Thursday, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on social media.
"These weapons will help Ukraine defend against Russia's invasion" and are enough material to equip a brigade, it said.
The arms and ammunition were seized between May 2021 and February 2023 from four "stateless vessels" as the supplies were being transferred from Iran's Revolutionary Guards to Yemen's Huthi rebels, CENTCOM said.
"The government obtained ownership of these munitions on December 1, 2023, through the Department of Justice's civil forfeiture claims," it said.
The Huthis have been targeting vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November 2023 in attacks they say are in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza -- a significant international security challenge that threatens a major shipping lane.
- Congressional impasse over aid -
"Iran's support for armed groups threatens international and regional security, our forces, diplomatic personnel, and citizens in the region, as well as those of our partners. We will continue to do whatever we can to shed light on and stop Iran's destabilizing activities," CENTCOM said.
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Washington made a similar transfer to Ukraine in early October, providing 1.1 million rounds of 7.62mm ammunition that was seized from Iranian forces on the way to Yemen.
But the delivery of crucial artillery and air defense munitions to Ukraine has been held up by Republican lawmakers who have stalled a $60 billion support package in the US Congress since last year, and Kyiv's troops have had to ration ammunition amid uncertainty over when the next deliveries will arrive.
The United States announced a $300 million assistance package for Kyiv on March 12 -- the first since December -- that included anti-aircraft and anti-tank weapons and artillery shells, but warned at the time that it would run out after a few weeks.
That package was funded by using money that the Pentagon saved on other purchases, allowing the US government to provide aid despite the congressional impasse.
US officials have spearheaded the push for international support for Ukraine, quickly forging a coalition to back Kyiv after Russia invaded in 2022 and coordinating aid from dozens of countries.
Washington has been by far Kyiv's biggest donor of security aid, committing tens of billions of dollars to aid Kyiv since the invasion.
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Comments (3)
Hmm maybe the US could just raid Syrian weapon depots and sent the contents to Ukraine. Twofer... Protects Israel, helps Ukraine. Three-fer... protects US troops in Syria. And if the Ruzzians in Syria object, target them too. They're supposed to be helping with the war on terror... or did they forget?
Thank God they've been given some munnitions. Does the gop really want to involve American soldiers in a fight that could b settled by just sending weapons instead? It's a no brainer to any one with a brain to send weapons instead of lives of our troops.
The U.S. under current admin probably bought this crap and paid a premium….
@PJ,
Try to look on the bright side.
These weapons are now serving a higher purpose killing invading Russia orcs. Even if some orcs might be your family members its still increasing your future inheritance cut (assuming russian trolls survive the upcoming Kremlin purge).
A MRGA troll says what?