Biden after Russian attack on Christmas: “I have ordered the Pentagon to increase military aid to Ukraine”

US President Joe Biden condemned Russia’s massive attack on Ukraine on Christmas and assured that he has ordered the Pentagon to increase arms supplies to Ukraine. 

In recent months, the United States has provided Ukraine with hundreds of air defense missiles, “and more are on the way,” according to Biden’s statement released by the White House.

“In the early hours of Christmas, Russia launched waves of missiles and drones against Ukrainian cities and critical energy infrastructure. The purpose of this outrageous attack was to cut off the Ukrainian people’s access to heat and electricity during winter and to jeopardize the safety of its grid,” Biden said.

Biden emphasized that “the Ukrainian people deserve to live in peace and security.” He added that the United States and the international community must continue to support Ukraine until it defeats Russian aggression.

“In recent months, the United States has provided Ukraine with hundreds of air defense missiles, and more are on the way. I have directed the Department of Defense to continue its surge of weapons deliveries to Ukraine, and the United States will continue to work tirelessly to strengthen Ukraine’s position in its defense against Russian forces,” Joe Biden said.

On the night of December 25, the Russian occupiers launched a massive missile and drone attack on the energy sector of Ukraine with missiles of various types of air, land, and sea-based missiles, and also Shahed attack UAVs and other types of drones.

On Christmas night, the Ukrainian Defense Forces destroyed 55 cruise missiles, 4 guided missiles and 54 attack drones out of 184 air targets launched by Russia.

In the early hours of Wednesday, Russian troops launched an attack on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure using 78 missiles and 106 Shahed drones, Ukraine’s air force said. The strikes damaged energy equipment and caused power outages in several regions. 

It was the 13th time Russia has poured a massive missile attack on Ukraine’s energy system, according to DTEK, Ukraine’s biggest private energy company. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the attack as “inhumane.”

“Today, Putin deliberately chose Christmas for an attack. What could be more inhumane? Over 70 missiles, including ballistic ones, and more than a hundred attack drones. The targets are our energy infrastructure. They continue to fight for a blackout in Ukraine,” Zelenskyy wrote on his X account.

The WSJ wrote that the Biden administration will not have time to send military aid to Ukraine for all the funds approved by Congress before the end of its term in January 2025, and some of the relevant powers will be transferred to Donald Trump’s team.

The Pentagon says it has reached the limit of weapons it can send to Ukraine on a monthly basis without compromising its own combat capability and is also facing logistical problems in delivery.

Earlier Politico reported that Biden had asked Congress to allocate another $24 billion for military aid to Ukraine and to replenish the stockpile of American weapons that had been transferred to Kyiv. However, the future Republican-dominated Congress is cool to this request.

At the same time, U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said that the current U.S. government believes that the military assistance that the United States has already provided or plans to provide until the end of Joe Biden’s term is enough for Ukraine to fight until the end of 2025.