Ukraine Aid Package Valued at up to $200 Million, White House Says

 This photograph shows a building destroyed by shelling in the town of Toretsk, Donetsk region, on July 29, 2024, amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine. (AFP)
This photograph shows a building destroyed by shelling in the town of Toretsk, Donetsk region, on July 29, 2024, amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine. (AFP)
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Ukraine Aid Package Valued at up to $200 Million, White House Says

 This photograph shows a building destroyed by shelling in the town of Toretsk, Donetsk region, on July 29, 2024, amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine. (AFP)
This photograph shows a building destroyed by shelling in the town of Toretsk, Donetsk region, on July 29, 2024, amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine. (AFP)

The United States announced a new security assistance package for Ukraine on Monday that is valued at up to $200 million and includes air defenses and anti-tank weapons, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said.

"This includes a presidential drawdown authority package to provide Ukraine with key capabilities for the fight that they're in, including air defense interceptors, munitions for US- provided HIMARS, artillery and mortar rounds, javelin anti-tank missiles and other anti-tank weapons," Kirby told reporters.

He said the Department of Defense also is announcing significant security assistance initiative funds to support Ukraine's defenses over the long term.

"That package includes capabilities to augment Ukraine's air defenses, long range fires and anti-tank weapons, and to sustain equipment previously committed by the United States," Kirby said.

Biden has authorized nine security assistance packages since late April, he said.

Ukrainian officials have been urging their allies for months to supply more air defense systems to counter frequent missile and drone attacks from Russian forces.

The United States has provided Ukraine with more than $50 billion worth of military aid since 2022, but there are concerns about the future of US support for Kyiv should Donald Trump win the Nov. 5 presidential election.

"We are grateful to our American partners for their leadership and staunch support. Together, we will win!" the Ukrainian defense ministry said in an X post welcoming the new package.



Vandals Attack French Telecoms Lines Days after Rail Sabotage

A high-speed train by French railway company SNCF travels on the Bordeaux-Paris route at reduced speed, at Chartres, northern France on July 26, 2024. AFP
A high-speed train by French railway company SNCF travels on the Bordeaux-Paris route at reduced speed, at Chartres, northern France on July 26, 2024. AFP
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Vandals Attack French Telecoms Lines Days after Rail Sabotage

A high-speed train by French railway company SNCF travels on the Bordeaux-Paris route at reduced speed, at Chartres, northern France on July 26, 2024. AFP
A high-speed train by French railway company SNCF travels on the Bordeaux-Paris route at reduced speed, at Chartres, northern France on July 26, 2024. AFP

Vandals attacked telecoms lines in parts of France overnight, disrupting some fixed and mobile services, the junior minister for digital matters, Marina Ferrari, said on X on Monday.
A police source said it was too early to tell if there was any link to sabotage on the high-speed rail network, which caused travel chaos hours before the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics on Friday.
Ferrari called the vandalism "cowardly and irresponsible" and said work was underway to get services back up and running.
According to Reuters, a spokesman for telecoms operator SFR said vandals had made cuts to its long-distance network in five different parts of France in the early hours of Monday.
The impact on clients was minimal because the network was designed to reroute traffic, he said.
Le Parisien newspaper reported earlier that cables in electrical cabinets had been cut in southern France, and that installations in the Meuse region near Luxembourg and the Oise area near Paris had been vandalized, affecting mainly fixed-line services.
Rail services only finally returned to normal on Monday morning, Transport Minister Patrice Vergriete said. Overall, around 800,000 people faced disruptions, including 100,000 whose trains had to be cancelled outright, he added.