14 TRAVIS TAILWIND
Ukraine From Page 9 48 to 72 hours, which is unprecedented, the official said. Another form of security assistance, the official said, is the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. For this process, DOD notifies Congress how it intends to use that money and that is generally done through contracting for new procurement so the timelines can be a little longer on providing that, the official said. Another source of funding for Ukraine security assistance comes from foreign military
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE/CLASSIFIEDS financing, which is under the authority of the State Department. It is used for new procurements, although it could also buy things out of DOD’s own stocks, the official said, adding that this type of assistance is for longer term requirements. “Security cooperation has enabled a strong U.S.-European defense and security relationship and suitably prepared Ukraine to face Russia in this premeditated, unprovoked and brutal invasion,” the official said. A second senior DOD official also spoke today. Since yesterday, two more Russian battalion tactical groups
April 22, 2022
Department of Defense graphic
have been added to the 76 in Ukraine, bringing the total to 78, the official said. So-called BTGs are typically composed of combined-arms
elements, such as air defense, armor, tactical vehicles, artillery, helicopters, engineering and logistical support. Mariupol is still contested. It
is being heavily pounded with Russian long-range fires, the official said. Russian forces are intent on taking Mariupol because it would provide a land bridge for Russia from the Donbas to Crimea. A second reason is that it would give the Russians flexibility to free up forces from there so they could join other BTGs northward in the Donbas, the official said. Mykolayiv, which is further to the west, is still in Ukrainian hands, the official said. Heavy fighting continues elsewhere in the Donbas region, the official said.
