U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken just announced that the Biden administration will be sending another $3.75 billion in military aid to Ukraine. 

The announcement was made in a press release that was published on Friday.

The press release begins, "in this first week of 2023, the United States continues to stand strongly behind Ukraine and our European allies and partners by announcing more than $3.75 billion in new military assistance."

The press release goes on to explain how this money will be divided up.

The specifics

$2.85 billion of the $3.75 billion will come in the form of a "drawdown from stocks of the Department of Defense to be provided immediately to Ukraine." Blinken indicates that this is the "29th drawdown of U.S. arms and equipment for Ukraine since August 2021."

Blinken claims:

This $2.85 billion drawdown will provide Ukraine with Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, artillery systems, armored personnel carriers, surface to air missiles, ammunition, and other items to support Ukraine as it bravely defends its people, its sovereignty, and its territorial integrity.

The remainder of the money will go to "build the long-term capacity and support modernization of Ukraine’s military" or to "European partners and allies to help incentivize and backfill donations of military equipment to Ukraine."

Blinken explains:

$225 million for Ukraine will be used to cover wartime requirements of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to provide them with means necessary to defend against Russia’s aggression and may also be used to support the sustainment of equipment previously provided to Ukraine under the Department of Defense’s Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative and under previous drawdowns. In the longer term, this Foreign Military Financing funding may be used to rebuild Ukraine’s capacity to provide for its own defense through development and modernization of its armed forces.

Blinken adds:

Additionally, the over $682 million in Foreign Military Financing for European allies and partners will be used to build the capacities of those impacted by Russia’s war in Ukraine to deter and defend against emergent threats to territorial sovereignty, increase professionalization and modernization of security forces, enhance partner military integration with NATO, and strengthen defensive cyber capabilities.

Background

As Blinken states in his press release, the Biden administration has now sent Ukraine almost $25 billion in military assistance.

Overall, though, upwards of $66 billion has been spent by the U.S. government on Ukraine. And, about $40 billion more was approved as part of the $1.7 trillion spending bill that recently was pushed through Congress.

It's a staggering amount of money, to say the least.

The question is whether it is justified, and many would say that it is not. A poll taken by the Morning Consult in early December found that many Americans, across party lines, are against such spending.

The government, though, isn't showing any signs of slowing down its spending on Ukraine.