Australia has announced its “largest” military aid to Ukraine to support its defense against Russia’s illegal invasion. Valued at approximately 250 million Australian dollars ($168.5 million), the package will include various armaments and boots for warfighters. This brings Australia’s security assistance to Kyiv to over 1.1 billion Australian dollars ($741.7 million) and total aid to approximately 1.3 billion Australian dollars ($876.4 million) since Moscow invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles announced Canberra’s latest pledge to Ukraine during a meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky at the 2024 NATO Leaders Summit in Washington, DC. At the conference, Marles and international counterparts signed a Memorandum of Understanding on an initiative seeking an advanced drone fleet for Ukraine, with an allotted 30 million Australian dollars ($20.2 million) for this purpose. Marles stated that the aid provided will make an ‘enormous contribution’ to Ukraine’s efforts to end the conflict on its terms and stand against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as an affront to international law and the rules-based order.
