The United States has delivered hundreds of Stinger anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine for the first time in days, including more than 200 on Monday, according to a U.S. official and source in Congress.
Earlier this year, the United States gave the green light to the Baltic states, including Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, to send American-made weapons to Ukraine, including Stingers. But so far, the Biden administration has refrained from providing the Stingers directly to Ukraine, while they provided other deadly weapons.
Some members of Congress have been pushing for more Stinger missiles to be sent to Ukraine for months. Ukrainians have repeatedly requested more weapons from the United States, including anti-aircraft and anti-tank weapons.
US Secretary of State Tony Blinken told reporters on Wednesday that at the time, Ukraine was still able to get the “vital military defense equipment” it needed.
More background: There are different generations of Stingers that the United States produces, and American officials have been aware that they do not provide the latest model to Ukrainians if they fall into the hands of Russians who could steal American technology.
Earlier this week, Germany announced it would supply 1,000 anti-tank weapons and 500 Stinger missiles to Ukraine, noting a change in its previous position not to send weapons to Ukraine amid the crisis.
NBC News was the first to announce the delivery of US Stingers to Ukraine.