US to provide $368mn in new humanitarian aid to Ukraine amid refugee crisis, says Blinken

US State Secretary Antony Blinken on Saturday announced fresh humanitarian aid worth $368 million to "support those affected by Russia's brutal war." The assistance is expected to provide for people inside Ukraine and refugees forced to flee their country to seek safety in the midst of Russia's unending brutalities in the east European nation, Blinken added. Breaking down the source of the new funding, the top diplomat of the US said that $288 million will be forwarded by the State Department while another $80 million will be allotted through the US Agency for International Development (US AID).

"The additional funding...will provide food, shelter, safe drinking water, cash assistance, protection, accessible shelter, emergency health care, logistics, and humanitarian coordination" to Ukrainians affected by the conflict," Blinken said in a statement.

The new humanitarian assistance to Ukraine comes after Washington last week allotted $400 million in security assistance to stage bolstered counterattack against Russian invaders. Washington, since February 24, has provided nearly $914 million in humanitarian aid to Ukraine amid Russia's assault that has pushed over 12 million people from their homes and triggered a staggering humanitarian crisis, according to US AID. The US-AID alone has extended $702 million to help internally displaced Ukrainians as well as those forces to migrate.

Russia alleges US trying to 'drag conflict' with new packages

With the new aid package, the US is only trying to drag the ongoing conflict with Ukraine "at any cost", said the Russian embassy in the US. In a statement, the embassy also alleged that Washington is compensating casualties among Ukrainian nationalists and troops by amplifying the flow of security assistance to the war-torn country.  This comes after Washington approved two security assistance tranches worth $400 million and $820 million simultaneously in a span of two weeks. The tranche will have the latest set of gear and supplies, including 1,000 rounds of 155 mm artillery built for greater precision and four additional High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS).

Zelenskyy 'truly grateful' for new military assistance

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed his gratitude to US President Joe Biden for the new aid package. "Truly grateful to 🇺🇸 President @POTUS, the 🇺🇸 people for continuing effective support of 🇺🇦 in countering Russia's aggression. More #HIMARS, 155mm shells are our priority needs. It is what helps us press on the enemy. We appreciate the 🇺🇸 support! Let's go to victory together!" Zelenskyy wrote on Twitter. Later during his night address, he thanked Washington, saying additional HIMARS launchers units and other high-precision weapons "allow us to take precisely anti-terrorist steps and reduce Russian attack capabilities."

In terms of security assistance, the US has now committed over $7.6 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of the Biden administration, including approximately $6.9 billion since the beginning of Russia’s unprovoked invasion on February 24, the US DoD noted. Meanwhile, Washington has overall committed more than $8.8 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since 2014.

(Image: AP)