US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made an unscheduled visit to Kyiv on Thursday as the Biden administration announced major new military aid worth more than USD 2 billion for Ukraine and other European countries threatened by Russia.

In meetings with senior Ukrainian officials, Blinken said the Biden administration had notified Congress of its intent to provide USD 2 billion in long-term Foreign Military Financing to Ukraine and 18 of its neighbours, including NATO members and regional security partners, that are “most potentially at risk for future Russian aggression."

Pending expected congressional approval, about USD 1 billion of that will go to Ukraine and the rest will be divided among Albania, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia, the State Department said.

It will go to help those countries “deter and defend against emergent threats to their sovereignty and territorial integrity" by enhancing their military integration with NATO and countering “Russian influence and aggression," the department said.

“This assistance demonstrates yet again our unwavering commitment to Ukraine's future as a democratic, sovereign, and independent state, as well as the security of allies and partners across the region,” it said.

Foreign Military Financing, or FMF, allows recipients to purchase US-made defense equipment, often depending on their specific needs.

The financing comes on top of a USD 675 million package of heavy weaponry, ammunition and armoured vehicles for Ukraine alone that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced earlier on Thursday at a conference in Ramstein, Germany.

That package includes howitzers, artillery munitions, Humvees, armoured ambulances, anti-tank systems, and more.