HIROSHIMA, Japan – US President Joe Biden announced $375 million in military aid to Ukraine on Sunday during a meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the G7 in the Japanese city of Hiroshima.
The aid package is valued at $375 million and includes weapons that the United States has already shipped to Ukraine such as artillery, ammunition, armored vehicles and high-mobility artillery rockets (HIMAR).
The leader said, “Astamos Unidos continues to help Ukraine defend itself, respond and recover. We are also helping in the search for a just peace. There is one aspect, which is Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.” , on which there can be no compromise.” ,
Afterwards, Zelensky thanked them for new military aid and for standing by his side “shoulder to shoulder” in the face of a Russian invasion of Ukraine that began in February 2022.
The two leaders met at the luxurious Grand Prince Hotel on the island of Ujina, which is the headquarters of the G7 summit, which ends this Sunday after three days of meetings.
According to the Pentagon’s statistics, since the beginning of the war, the United States has provided $36.9 billion in military aid to Ukraine.
The first session of the G7 summit began this Friday in the city of Hiroshima (western Japan) with a focus on the world economy as the leaders visited the Peace Museum and Park and paid their respects to the victims of the atomic bombings.
Zelensky arrived in the Japanese city of Hiroshima on Saturday to attend the G7 summit. His mission is twofold: to gain greater Western military support for the war and to engage in negotiations with countries such as Brazil and India, who have refused to join the West in condemning the invasion and continuing trade with Russia. Have given.
Before coming to Japan, Zelensky had already scored several victories by getting the G7 to announce a round of sanctions against Russia and getting Biden to change his mind about the US-made F-16 fighter jets, which Been walking in Kiev for months.
Specifically, Biden told his G7 partners that the US would help train Ukrainian pilots in operating the F-16 and opened the door for Ukraine to deliver those planes in the future.
Today was the fourth bilateral meeting between the two leaders since Biden arrived at the White House in January 2021.
The first two were at the White House: one in September 2021 before the start of the war and the other in December 2022, Zelensky’s first trip abroad since the Russian invasion began in February this year.
The third meeting was in Kiev, where Biden made a surprise visit ahead of a trip to Poland and the anniversary of the start of the Russian invasion.
In today’s meeting, Biden recalled the moment air raid sirens sounded in Kiev when he was visiting and how he looked up at Zelensky, who did not appear concerned.
“If he wasn’t worried about the sirens, neither am I,” Biden joked, which drew laughter from those in the room.
