The Pentagon has notified Congress that Ukraine's government has made the necessary progress on key institutional reforms, thereby justifying an additional $125 million in new military assistance, including patrol boats armed with remote-controlled 30mm autocannons, according to a U.S. defense official and a congressional aide.
That certification that Kiev was making progress in countering corruption, improving transparency and boosting civilian oversight was required by law to permit the assistance package moving forward. The package is the second half of the $250 million in Ukraine Security Assistance that was appropriated by Congress in the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act.
The new assistance package includes mobile radar systems designed to detect and track incoming artillery and rocket fire, dozens of ambulances, secure communications equipment, including 100 "tactical tablets" and the two patrol boats, the latter of which is seen as particularly important given Ukraine's tensions with Russia in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, CNN reported.
