US to sent military contractors to Ukraine for the first time
- 12 November, 10:30
Washington will send military contractors to Ukraine to help repair and maintain US-provided weaponry. This is first instance of deployment of military contractors to Ukraine since Russia’s full-fled invasion in February 2022.
Biden’s administration made the relevant decision in early November, prior to the presidential election.
The contractors will be located far from the front lines and they will not be fighting Russian forces, a defence official told media. The unnamed source added that this contractors will help Ukrainian armed forces rapidly repair and maintain US-provided equipment as needed so it can be quickly returned to the front lines.
“In order to help Ukraine repair and maintain military equipment provided by the US and its allies, DoD (Department of Defense) is soliciting bids for a small number of contractors who will help Ukraine maintain the assistance we’ve already provided,” the defense official said.
The decision to deploy defence contractors stems from the fact that military equipment provided to Ukraine, specifically F-16s and Patriots, “require specific technical expertise to maintain,” the defence official explained.
It’s unknown whether the president-elect Donald Trump will keep this policy in place after his inauguration in January. Trump is critical of large-scale military aid to Kyiv and has repeatedly called for the end to Russia-Ukraine war. Biden administration seeks to provide billions of dollars in assistance to Ukraine before leaving the office in two months.
The United States is Ukraine’s largest military backer, committing over $60 billion security aid since the start of the war and providing Kyiv with a wide range of military hardware, defence systems, tanks, HIMARS rocket launchers, artillery pieces and munitions.
