US announces $3bn in military assistance for Ukraine

WASHINGTON: The United States announced $3 billion dollars in military assistance for Ukraine on Friday, which the White House said was the largest aid package for Kyiv to date.

Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the assistance, which will be detailed later by the Pentagon, is expected to include Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, MRAPs and other personnel carriers, and self-propelled howitzers.

Washington and Berlin announced the previous day that they would provide armoured vehicles — Bradleys from the United States and Marders from Germany — but did not provide details on numbers.

Bradleys, which are usually armed with a 25mm autocannon, a 7.62mm machine gun and anti-tank missiles, will provide Ukrainian forces with additional firepower.

"It's not a tank, but it's a tank killer," Pentagon spokesman Brigadier General Pat Ryder said Thursday.

"We're confident that it will aid them on the battlefield," he added.

It should be noted that on a previous day, Russia ordered a ceasefire amid Orthodox Christmas eve which was urged by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russia's spiritual leader Patriarch Kirill, a staunch Putin supporter.

However, that ceasefire was rejected by Ukraine calling it ' 'hypocrisy', adding that "Russia wants to use truce as cover to stop our advances in Donbas and bring in more equipment."