US provides $1.7 billion to Ukraine for health, humanitarian assistance

By Servet Gunerigok

WASHINGTON (AA) - Washington has provided Ukraine with an additional $1.7 billion for health and humanitarian assistance, a statement from the US Agency for International Development (USAID) said Tuesday.

The new package went through USAID in coordination with the Treasury Department to provide Kyiv with direct budgetary aid.

"This contribution was made possible with generous bipartisan support from Congress," it said.

"The additional resources provided by the United States, through the World Bank, will alleviate the acute budget deficit caused by Putin’s brutal war of aggression and ensure the Ukrainian government can continue operating and responding to critical needs, including delivery of essential services such as healthcare by paying the salaries of healthcare workers," it added.

So far, USAID has given Ukraine $4 billion in direct budgetary support.

"These resources have helped the Ukrainian government continue carrying out core functions – for example, keeping gas and electricity flowing to hospitals, schools, and other critical infrastructure, supporting the provision of humanitarian supplies to citizens, and continuing to pay the salaries of civil servants and teachers," said the statement. "The United States remains committed to supporting Ukraine and its people in the wake of Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified war.”

Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal earlier confirmed the transaction in a tweet, writing: "1.7 billion dollars of grant aid came to the Ukrainian budget from the Trust Fund of the @WorldBank and @USAID. This is the second US grant in the last two weeks, the total amount of aid is to 3 billion dollars. Grateful to & @POTUS for incredible support.”

Nearly 4,900 civilians have been killed in Ukraine since the beginning of the war on Feb. 24, according to UN figures.

More than 15 million people have been forced to flee their homes, including over 8.7 million that have fled to other countries.