Trump administration approves first Ukraine arms aid funded by NATO allies
Editor's note: The story was updated with a confirmation by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry and President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The Trump administration has approved its first U.S. weapons aid packages for Ukraine funded by NATO allies under a new financial arrangement, two undisclosed sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Sept. 16.
The aid will be the first use of the Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List (PURL), a mechanism developed by NATO members and the United States to coordinate and fund Kyiv's most urgent battlefield needs.
The shipments, valued at up to $500 million each, were cleared by Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby, according to Reuters. The packages could ship "soon" as Washington is resuming arms deliveries to Ukraine, this time financed by allied governments.
Through PURL, allies pool contributions to buy American weapons, munitions, and equipment from U.S. stockpiles. The initiative could ultimately provide as much as $10 billion worth of weaponry, according to the sources cited by Reuters.
Since taking office in 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump's administration has sold weapons to Ukraine or shipped deliveries authorized under former U.S. President Joe Biden. The new mechanism marks the first aid packages initiated during Trump's second term.
"It's the stuff they've been asking for. A lot of stuff," one source reportedly said.
Kyiv has confirmed the reporting. Spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi said on Sept. 17 that the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry was notified about the decision by the Ukrainian Embassy in the U.S. a day earlier.
"This is a very good, mutually beneficial cooperation for us, for our European partners, and for the United States," Tykhyi said at a press briefing in Kyiv, without providing details on the package.
Speaking at a press conference on Sept. 17, President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Ukraine will receive Patriot and HIMARS missiles as part of the PURL package.
In August, Zelensky said that Ukraine aims to secure at least $1 billion a month from its allies to purchase American-made weapons.
The plan also calls for a $50 billion partnership with Ukrainian companies to produce drones and includes at least 10 U.S.-made Patriot air defense systems.
Francis Farrell
