Hundreds of Ukrainian soldiers wanted to protect themselves against the bullets of the Russian invaders with these vests – but due to theft, the planned delivery from the USA will never reach them.
Thieves have stolen bulletproof vests destined for Ukraine from the New York office of an aid organization. “Around 400 bulletproof vests” have disappeared from the headquarters of the organization Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA) in the east coast metropolis. This was announced by the New York police on Thursday (local time). So far no one has been arrested. “The investigation is ongoing.”
A spokesman for UCCA said about 300 vests were stolen. It was unclear “how and why” the theft occurred and who was responsible.
Long Island police officers donated the bulletproof vests to UCCA. According to the organization, it had planned to deliver the vests to helpers in Ukraine and have them distributed throughout the country.
According to estimates, almost 1.5 million people of Ukrainian descent live in the USA. Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, many US organizations have been running fundraisers for the country.
US continues arms and aid shipments
Irrespective of this, the USA intends to continue its arms and aid deliveries on a large scale. On Wednesday President Joe Biden (79) announced new support of 800 million dollars (730 million euros).
Thousands of anti-tank weapons, around 800 anti-aircraft missiles, 7,000 firearms such as submachine guns, numerous grenade launchers, 20 million rounds of ammunition and even drones are to be made available to Ukraine, Biden said. “America stands by the forces of liberty,” President Biden said. The US would support Ukraine for as long as necessary.
With the new anti-aircraft missiles, Ukrainians could continue to “stop Russia’s planes and helicopters” and defend Ukrainian airspace, Biden said. The US will also help Ukraine get even longer-range anti-aircraft systems capable of hitting targets at higher altitudes, Biden promised.
The US government has already pledged military aid and arms supplies to Ukraine worth 1.35 billion dollars (around 1.22 billion euros) since the start of the Russian war of aggression about three weeks ago. Since the beginning of last year, US aid has totaled two billion dollars.
The US military has trained Ukrainian soldiers and provided them with equipment and modern weapons. These included Stinger anti-aircraft missiles and Javelin anti-tank guided missiles. Other countries, including Germany, have also supplied or promised arms to Ukraine.
Just last week, the US Congress passed a budget that earmarked a total of $13.6 billion (€12.3 billion) for humanitarian, economic and military aid to Ukraine by the end of September. Immediately prior to Biden’s announcement, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in a speech to both chambers of the US Congress, had emphatically called for more military support from the West, the establishment of a no-fly zone and new sanctions against Russia.
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