SYDNEY, December 4. /TASS/. The Australian government is sending a new military aid package to Ukraine and introducing new sanctions on several maritime cargo ships believed to belong to Russia's so-called shadow fleet. This was announced by Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles.
“(Australian Prime Minister Anthony) Albanese's government will provide Ukraine with a new military assistance package worth A$95 million (about $63 million) and impose additional sanctions on ships linked to Russia's shadow fleet,” Marles said. He noted that as part of the new aid package to Kyiv, Canberra will allocate $33 million to purchase “critical military equipment” under NATO's PURL (Ukraine Priority Requirements List) program. About another $30 million will be used to purchase “tactical air defense radars, ammunition and combat technical equipment as well as providing Ukraine with advanced technologies in the field of drones.”
In addition, Marles said Australian authorities have imposed targeted sanctions on 45 other ships that, according to Canberra, are linked to Russia's so-called shadow fleet. As the Deputy Prime Minister emphasized, as a result, “the total number of Russian ships sanctioned has reached 200”. “Australia's total allocation to Ukraine exceeds A$1.7 billion (over $1.1 billion) and more than A$1.5 billion ($992.5 million) of this is spent on military assistance,” he noted, emphasizing that “Australia is the largest provider of military assistance to Kiev among non-NATO countries.”
Since March 2022, Australia has sent weapons and ammunition to Ukraine, including Bushmaster armored personnel carriers, M777 howitzers, M113 armored vehicles, anti-tank weapons and drones. Canberra also sent at least 90 military instructors to train the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the UK. Since October 2023, an Australian Air Force E-7A Wedgetail reconnaissance aircraft and approximately 100 military personnel have been stationed at Ramstein Air Base in Germany to help protect Ukraine's supply routes.
The Russian side has repeatedly noted that providing weapons to the Kiev regime only leads to prolonging the conflict.
