The US government has approved the sale of 150 modern Javelin anti-tank weapons to Ukraine. The $ 39.2 million package (equivalent to € 35.8 million) includes ten control and launch units, training materials and services, the State Department said.
The sale was in the national interest of the US and will help Ukraine to defend its "sovereignty and territorial integrity," the statement said. The sale was approved but not yet completed.
Ukraine is in conflict with Russia. The government in Kiev wants to acquire the Javelins for a long time. Newly elected President Volodymyr Selenskyj had asked in late July in an interview with US President Donald Trump. Produced by the manufacturers Raytheon and Lockheed Martin, the guided missile system can be used from a long distance against tanks, armored vehicles or bunkers.
The approval of the arms sale took place just under two weeks after the so-called Ukrainian news in Washington became known. The Democrats accuse Republican President Trump of putting pressure on Selenskyj in the phone call in late July to investigate something that would harm his rival Joe Biden. Trump is said to have used the retention of military aid as a lever.
The Democrats in the House of Representatives have therefore begun investigations into impeachment Trump. He rejects the allegations as absurd (read more about recent developments in the Ukrainian economy here).
