U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris announced more than 1.5 billion USD in new aid to Ukraine, mainly for the energy sector and humanitarian assistance, more than two years after the Russian invasion.
Harris, who was attending a two-day peace summit in the luxury mountain resort of Birkenstock in Switzerland, said the aid included 500 million USD in new funding for energy assistance, AFP reported.
Another 324 million USD in previously announced USAID funding will also be redirected to meet urgent energy needs.
"This funding will repair and protect energy infrastructure damaged during the war, expand electricity generation, and encourage private sector investment," Harris said.
"These efforts will help Ukraine respond to the recent Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure by supporting repair and restoration, improving Ukraine's resilience to energy supply disruptions, and laying the groundwork to rebuild and expand Ukraine's energy system."
The new package from USAID and the State Department also includes more than 379 million USD in humanitarian assistance.
This will "help meet the urgent needs of refugees, internally displaced persons, and conflict-affected communities affected by Russia's brutal war against the Ukrainian people," Harris stressed.
The State Department, with congressional support, will provide an additional 300 million USD in assistance to Ukrainian civilian security, she added.
"This support will help them operate safely on the front lines of the war to defend Ukrainian territory, rescue civilians targeted by the Kremlin, protect critical infrastructure, and investigate more than 120,000 reported cases of war crimes and other atrocities," the vice president concluded. | BGNES
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