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Ukraine Invasion Day 255: chaos climbing, 3-D model of Bucha massacre, and RU shooting deserters [1]
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Date: 2022-11-04
WASHINGTON — The Defense Department is setting up a new command to oversee how the United States and its allies train and equip the Ukrainian military, the Pentagon announced on Friday along with a new package of $400 million in security assistance.
The Pentagon’s commitment to supplying Ukraine with weaponry and the new command are clear signals that the United States expects the threat from Russia to Ukraine and its neighbors to persist for many years, current and former senior U.S. officials said.
The command will “ensure we are postured to continue supporting Ukraine over the long term,” Sabrina Singh, deputy Pentagon press secretary, told reporters at a news briefing. “We remain committed to Ukraine for as long as it takes.”
In the military, a command is a focused organization dedicated to a particular geographical or strategic area. The new command, called the Security Assistance Group-Ukraine, or SAG-U, will based in Germany and within the structure of the Pentagon’s European Command. With a staff of about 300 people, it will be focused on one mission: to help train and equip Ukraine’s military.
The new command will streamline a training and assistance system that was created on the fly after the Russian invasion in February. The Times reported in September that the new structure was in the works.
[...]
The latest announcement brings to $18.9 billion the amount in military assistance that the United States has committed to Ukraine since Russia invaded on Feb. 24. The funds comprise a combination of immediate shipments from stockpiles as well as contracts for weapons to be delivered over the next three years.
Over the past several months, General Donahue, who commanded the American evacuation from Afghanistan in August 2021, has helped oversee training in Ukraine, talking to Ukrainian generals about their battlefield needs and drawing on his Special Operations background to advise his Ukrainian counterparts.
General Donahue and his staff have been deployed to Poland and Germany since the early days of the war. His staff recently returned to its main headquarters at Fort Bragg, N.C., where they were greeted this week by Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III. General Donahue will remain in Germany until his successor arrives, Pentagon officials said.
The new command, which will report to Gen. Christopher G. Cavoli, the top American officer in Europe, will carry out the decisions made by the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, a coalition of 40 countries that the Defense Department created after the Russian invasion to address Ukraine’s needs and requests. Senior military officials from the member nations met in Brussels this week.
www.nytimes.com/…
Here’s what we know:
The creation of the command signals that the American government plans to provide backing for what could be years of war.
www.nytimes.com/...
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https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2022/11/4/2133620/-Ukraine-Invasion-Day-255-chaos-climbing-3-D-model-of-Bucha-massacre-and-RU-shooting-deserters
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