Latest news with #State Department
Arab News
3 hours ago
- Business
- Arab News
State Department approves $322 million in proposed weapons sales to Ukraine
The State Department said Wednesday that it has approved $322 million in proposed weapons sales to Ukraine to enhance its air defense capabilities and provide armored combat vehicles, coming as the country works to fend off escalating Russian attacks. The potential sales, which the department said were notified to Congress, include $150 million for the supply, maintenance, repair and overhaul of US armored vehicles, and $172 million for surface-to-air missile systems. The approvals come weeks after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth directed a pause on other weapons shipments to Ukraine to allow the Pentagon to assess its weapons stockpiles, in a move that caught the White House by surprise. President Donald Trump then made an abrupt change in posture, pledging publicly earlier this month to continue to send weapons to Ukraine. 'We have to,' Trump said. 'They have to be able to defend themselves. They're getting hit very hard now. We're going to send some more weapons — defensive weapons primarily.' Trump recently endorsed a plan to have European allies buy US military equipment that can then be transferred to Ukraine. It was not immediately clear how the latest proposed sales related to that arrangement. Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the US has provided more than $67 billion in weapons and security assistance to Kyiv. Since Trump came back into office, his administration has gone back and forth about providing more military aid to Ukraine, with political pressure to stop US funding of foreign wars coming from the isolationists inside the Trump administration and on Capitol Hill. Over the course of the war, the US has routinely pressed for allies to provide air defense systems to Ukraine. But many are reluctant to give up the high-tech systems, particularly countries in Eastern Europe that also feel threatened by Russia.
The Independent
3 hours ago
- Business
- The Independent
State Department approves $322 million in proposed weapons sales to Ukraine
The State Department said Wednesday that it has approved $322 million in proposed weapons sales to Ukraine to enhance its air defense capabilities and provide armored combat vehicles, coming as the country works to fend off escalating Russian attacks. The potential sales, which the department said were notified to Congress, include $150 million for the supply, maintenance, repair and overhaul of U.S. armored vehicles, and $172 million for surface-to-air missile systems. The approvals come weeks after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth directed a pause on other weapons shipments to Ukraine to allow the Pentagon to assess its weapons stockpiles, in a move that caught the White House by surprise. President Donald Trump then made an abrupt change in posture, pledging publicly earlier this month to continue to send weapons to Ukraine. 'We have to,' Trump said. 'They have to be able to defend themselves. They're getting hit very hard now. We're going to send some more weapons — defensive weapons primarily.' Trump recently endorsed a plan to have European allies buy U.S. military equipment that can then be transferred to Ukraine. It was not immediately clear how the latest proposed sales related to that arrangement. Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the U.S. has provided more than $67 billion in weapons and security assistance to Kyiv. Since Trump came back into office, his administration has gone back and forth about providing more military aid to Ukraine, with political pressure to stop U.S. funding of foreign wars coming from the isolationists inside the Trump administration and on Capitol Hill. Over the course of the war, the U.S. has routinely pressed for allies to provide air defense systems to Ukraine. But many are reluctant to give up the high-tech systems, particularly countries in Eastern Europe that also feel threatened by Russia. ___
New York Times
10 hours ago
- Health
- New York Times
U.S. Quietly Drafts Plan to End Program That Saved Millions From AIDS
The federal program to combat H.I.V. in developing nations earned a reprieve last week when Congress voted to restore $400 million in funding. Still, officials at the State Department have been mapping out a plan to shut it down in the coming years. Planning documents for the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, obtained by The New York Times, call for the organization to set a new course that focuses on 'transitioning' countries away from U.S. assistance, some in as little as two years. PEPFAR, as the program is called, would cease to exist as an initiative to provide medicines and services needed to treat and prevent the spread of H.I.V. in low-income countries. It would be replaced by 'bilateral relationships' with low-income countries focused on the detection of outbreaks that could threaten the United States and the creation of new markets for American drugs and technologies, according to the documents. 'With targeted investment, PEPFAR's H.I.V. control capabilities in these countries could be transformed into a platform for rapid detection and outbreak response to protect Americans from disease threats like Ebola,' the plan says. A State Department spokeswoman said the document had not been finalized. 'The referenced document is not reflective of the State Department's policy on PEPFAR and was never cleared by Department leadership,' she said. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Arab News
a day ago
- Politics
- Arab News
US envoy to discuss finalizing Gaza aid ‘corridor': State Dept
WASHINGTON: The United States said Tuesday that it was sending an envoy to the Middle East for talks that aim to finalize a 'corridor' for aid to war-ravaged Gaza, where authorities said people are dying of starvation. Steve Witkoff, President Donald Trump's globe-trotting negotiator, is traveling to the region for new talks, State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce told reporters. Witkoff comes with 'a strong hope that we will come forward with another ceasefire as well as a humanitarian corridor for aid to flow, that both sides have in fact agreed to,' she said. Bruce declined to give further details on his itinerary or the corridor, saying that he was traveling around Gaza. She did not say how the diplomacy would relate to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a controversial initiative backed by Israel and the United States that has seen chaotic scenes of troops firing on hungry Palestinians racing for food. The UN on Tuesday said Israeli forces had killed more than 1,000 Palestinians trying to get food aid since the GHF began its operations in late May, with most near the foundation's sites.
NHK
3 days ago
- Politics
- NHK
Washington, Seoul, Beijing respond to Japan's election
Japan's Upper House election on Sunday was followed with interest by other countries. In the United States, a spokesperson for the State Department said Washington looks forward to continuing to work with Japan's government across a broad agenda of bilateral, regional and global issues. Key among them are regional stability, the defense alliance, economic ties, and the trilateral relationship with South Korea. The Foreign Ministry of South Korea issued a statement saying it will continue to exchange opinions closely with Japan to construct solid and mature bilateral relations. In China, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun said it would not comment on Japan's internal affairs. Rather, he said it emphasized the need for dialogue and stability between the two countries.
