US Readies New UKRaine Arms Package Despite Tumult in Congress; RUssian Attacks Repelled in 5 Directions; UKR Defense Forces Have Success East of Andriivka in Bakhmut Sector; UKR Air Defenses Destroy 25 Out of 33 Kamikaze Drones Overnight, LIVE UPDATES and MORE

US readies new Ukraine arms package despite tumult in Congress:

The Biden administration is expected to announce a new weapons package for Ukraine next week as the Pentagon continues to use up funds discovered due to a multi-billion dollar accounting error, U.S. officials said.

Those funds have allowed the Biden administration to send Kyiv arms, supplies and munitions despite the exclusion of new Ukraine aid from a stopgap spending bill passed by the House of Representatives last weekend to prevent a government shutdown.

Biden has been asking Congress to approve another $24 billion related to Ukraine, which the country’s supporters – Republicans as well as Democrats – had hoped could become law as part of a spending bill. The request is still pending.

But the Pentagon still has about $5.4 billion of congressionally granted presidential drawdown authority (PDA), after the Pentagon found in June it had overestimated the value of arms shipped to Ukraine by $6.2 billion due to an accounting error.

The composition of the next round of weapons aid is still being formulated and is set to be unveiled on Wednesday at the 16th meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Brussels where security assistance will be a key topic, the officials said.

It was expected to have a value of around $200 million and could include similar ammunition and ground vehicles that have been in recent aid packages.

Biden has vowed to replenish stocks of arms sent to Ukraine. The true cost of shipping weapons is measured when the replacement is purchased. —>READ MORE HERE

War update: Russian attacks repelled in five directions:

Ukraine’s Defense Forces have repelled Russian attacks in the Kupiansk, Lyman, Marinka, Shakhtarske and Zaporizhzhia directions.

The relevant statement was made by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

Twenty-eight combat engagements have occurred on the front in the past 24 hours. The operational situation is remaining challenging in eastern and southern Ukraine, according to the General Staff.

Ukrainian forces continue conducting the offensive operation in the Melitopol direction and offensive (assault) actions in the Bakhmut direction, inflicting personnel and equipment losses on Russian occupation troops and exhausting the enemy all over the front line.

Over the past day, Ukraine’s Air Force has launched 14 strikes: three strikes on Russian surface-to-air missile systems, and the rest on enemy personnel, ammunition and military equipment clusters.

Ukrainian missile units hit one Russian command post, one air defense system, one personnel cluster, six artillery systems, and one electronic warfare system.

Meanwhile, Russian troops launched two missile strikes and 57 air strikes, and opened fire with multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) 43 times on Ukrainian positions and settlements. The enemy also attacked Ukraine’s territory with the Shahed-136/131 suicide drones.

Following Russian attacks, casualties among civilians were reported, as well as the damage caused to residential houses and other civil infrastructure.

In the Volyn and Polissia directions, the operational situation remained rather unchanged. No signs of enemy offensive groupings were detected. Separate Belarusian units are carrying out tasks within the areas bordering with Ukraine. —>READ MORE HERE

Follow links below to +++++relevant+++++ and related stories:

+++++Russia-Ukraine News LATEST UPDATES: (REUTERS) (AP) (NY POST) and (WSJ)+++++

+++++Defense Forces have success east of Andriivka in Bakhmut sector – General Staff+++++

+++++Ukrainian air defenses destroy 25 out of 33 kamikaze drones overnight+++++

Ukraine delivers nearly 2,000 AI-powered drones to the troops



Ukraine expects to receive F-16 modification not inferior to Russia’s Su-35s



Ukraine expands foothold in Zaporizhzhia Oblast



Netherlands announces new $100 million package to support Ukraine



Air-raid warnings issued twice tonight in Sevastopol, Crimea; Russian air defence activated



Sweden pledges more military aid to Ukraine, considers fighter jets



Putin claims Prigozhin’s jet was downed by hand grenades blown up on board, hints at cocaine use



Chilling nuclear war drills held in Russia show kids wearing gas masks: ‘Please remain calm!’



Zelensky Asks Europe for More Help as Missile Strike Kills 50



Russian strike hits building in Kharkiv, Ukraine



Ukraine freezes assets of three Russian tycoons worth $464 million, prosecutors say



EU reaffirms unwavering support for Ukraine, European future of candidate countries



Ukrainian officer on Russian fortifications in southern Ukraine – interview




Denmark acquires military plant in Northern Jutland, set to produce ammo to Ukraine

Source