US 'not in a rush' to deliver long-range multiple rocket launchers to Ukraine, says WH

Amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine and repetitive requests from embattled President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for the supply of weapons, the White House clarified that it is not in a rush to provide ‘US long-range multiple rocket launchers’ to Kyiv, citing concerns that this would be seen as an undue escalation by the Kremlin. According to a European Pravda report, the United States, however, has previously supplied Ukraine with the 'Soviet-style MLRS' (Multiple Launch Rocket System) without seeking publicity. Further, the US has urged its allies for help who still have them in their arsenal. 

Ukraine, on the other hand, looks for a more precise and powerful American rocket launching system. For over a month, Kyiv has been requesting this, claiming that a strong MLRS is necessary to boost its advantage in artillery duels in eastern conflicts. Since the US MLRS is more long-range and deadly than Soviet versions and howitzers, the White House believes that the Kremlin would see this as an intentional escalation, European Pravda reported. 

In addition, as per The Hill report on May 5, the US has been giving billions of dollars in weapons to Ukraine, placing pressure on defence contractors. The visit by US President Joe Biden to a Lockheed Martin factory in Troy, Alabama, demonstrated a bipartisan sentiment that maintaining the US' capacity to sustain its own supply is just as important as ensuring Ukraine's ability to defend itself against Russia. 

US approved the $40 billion aid package for Ukraine on May 10

Apart from this, on May 10, the US House overwhelmingly approved the $40 billion Ukraine aid package, bolstering President Biden's first request and signaling a stronger, bipartisan commitment to oppose Russian President Vladimir Putin's violent three-month-old incursion. 

The package passed with a 368-57 vote, delivering $7 billion over Biden's April proposal and evenly splitting the amount between defence and humanitarian programs. According to the Associated Press report, the plan would offer military and economic aid to Ukraine, as well as support to regional allies, restock weaponry that the Pentagon has moved elsewhere, and spend $5 billion to address global food shortages created by the war damaging Ukraine's typically robust agricultural output. 

The new proposal would bring total American backing for the program to roughly $54 billion, which includes the $13.6 billion in March. According to a January analysis by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service, which researches topics for legislators, this is roughly $6 billion more than the US spent on all foreign and military assistance in 2019. 

(Image: AP)