The United States allocated a record amount of military assistance to Kyiv: what exactly will the Armed Forces of Ukraine receive

Alexander Sychev

This is not a one-time delivery of the next weapon set, but a kind of "envelope" in which money is placed for the future.

President Biden said so - money for the medium and even long term. Washington believes that Ukraine should continue to ensure its security and strengthen its armed forces in the future by purchasing everything it needs from the United States.

However, the coveted “envelope” was immediately unpacked and six NASAMS anti-aircraft missile systems were taken out for the named amount, which will be provided to Kyiv in addition to the two previously promised. In addition, Ukraine will receive 245,000 155-mm artillery shells (among them, according to Pentagon journalists, there may be M982 Excalibur precision-guided shells), 65,000 120-mm mortar rounds, 24 counter-battery radars, Vampire drones , ScanEagle reconnaissance drone support, which was included in the previous $775 million set, and military training funds.

All the best in Ukraine to the detriment of yourself?

The generosity of the White House is simply incredible. Since the start of the special military operation, Washington has allocated $13.7 billion to the Kyiv regime, of which almost five in the last month alone. It is no coincidence that in Kyiv they started talking about a big counteroffensive. By the way, armored demining vehicles appeared in the previous set.

Ukraine today is probably the envy of some federal programs. For example, the National Science Foundation received $9.2 billion this year, and the Small Business Assistance program received $1.7 billion. The aid to Kyiv is larger than the annual budgets of the federal judiciary ($9.7 billion), Congress ($6.6 billion ), not to mention the expenses of the presidential administration itself (0.6 billion). The volume of military aid to Ukraine is matched to the budget of the Environmental Protection Agency (15.9 billion) and NASA - 24.9 billion.

At the same time, in the United States itself, GDP has been declining for the second quarter in a row, business investment in fixed assets decreased by 3.9%, the Federal Reserve System undertook to raise the base rate in an attempt to curb inflation. And the state budget deficit has already exceeded 30 trillion. "How are you going to pay for this?" asks Larry Korb, a defense budget expert at the Center for American Progress, a former Navy officer who once served as assistant secretary of defense in the Ronald Reagan administration.

The answer to such questions in the White House, and in other American government agencies, is not given. The military-industrial lobby is seizing the moment. Larry Korb estimates that by next year, including all of President Biden's emergency spending, the US military budget will actually reach one trillion dollars.

Shells - it doesn’t happen more precisely

As for the current set of weapons, the lists include systems that, in the opinion of the US military, should finally change the course of events in Ukraine. The number of shells and mines is noteworthy, as well as rumors about the upcoming shipment of the M982 Excalibur, laser-guided projectiles manufactured by Raytheon.

The first experience of the combat use of the Excalibur projectile took place in Iraq in the summer of 2007. Then 92% of the shells fell from targets within four meters. The army generals were so pleased that they insisted on increasing the production rate to 150 shells per month. Prior to this, the company's factory produced only 18 pieces per month.

The increased firing range, up to 60 kilometers, is achieved due to folding wings, which allow the projectile to glide to the target from the top point of the ballistic trajectory.

All-weather drones

The United States continues to strengthen the intelligence capabilities of the Ukrainian armed forces. This time, RQ-20 Puma unmanned aerial systems manufactured by AeroVironment will be provided.

The RQ-20 Puma is called the system because it is not one drone, but three aircraft, which are supported by two ground stations. The Puma system can operate in extreme weather conditions, including severe frosts down to 29 degrees, strong winds of 46 kilometers per hour and heavy rain. Autumn is coming, and winter is just around the corner.

A one and a half meter drone weighs about six kilograms. The maximum speed is 80 kilometers per hour. Charging the batteries is enough for two hours of flight.

infrared vampires

And in order to limit the freedom of action of Russian drones, it was decided to send the Vehicle-Agnostic Modular Palletized ISR Rocket Equipment or VAMPIRE (“Vampire”) aviation system to Ukraine. This is a product of L3Harris.

VAMPIRE consists of a quadruple launcher for 70mm laser-guided missiles such as the Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System II (APKWS II), as well as a sensor turret with electro-optical and infrared cameras, a centralized control system and a dedicated power supply. The system can be installed on any vehicle.

The fact that the "Vampire" was called a means of combating drones is very strange. Representatives of the company L3Harris never said that their system is capable of fighting drones. Their target was cruise missiles. Apparently, they decided to conduct new tests and expand the range of applications.

Universal Radar

Which counter-battery radars were included in the current list, Pentagon representatives did not disclose, but most likely, we are talking about the AN / TPQ-36 Firefinder. They are the most common, there are a lot of them in American warehouses, and they are being replaced by more modern ones.

The radar was created back in the 70s by the now defunct company Hughes Aircraft. Since the beginning of the 80s, up to 300 radars of various modifications have been manufactured.

AN / TPQ-36 is familiar to the Ukrainian military. For the period from 2015 to 2019 C, which Northrop Grumman and Raytheon worked on. From 2015 to 2019, the United States sent 12 such radars to Ukraine. Their characteristics were then somewhat worsened so that the technologies would not go to Russia. Such an operation will undoubtedly be carried out now.

The radar is placed on several trailers. The phased array antenna consists of 64 electronically scanned transceiver elements. The station is able to determine the position of cannon artillery at distances up to 15 kilometers, mortars - up to 18 kilometers, rocket systems - up to 24, and simultaneously accompanies up to 99 flying shells.

The control car can be removed from the radar antenna by 50 meters, and in the case of using a remote terminal - one hundred meters.