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US will give Ukraine munitions for HIMARS, HAWK 2, and Puma as part of new military aid package.

A new rocket that would double Ukraine's strike range was included in a $2.175 billion U.S. military aid package, the Pentagon said on Friday, Reuters reported.

The new weapon, the Ground Launched Small Diameter Bomb (GLSDB), will allow Ukraine's military to hit targets at twice the distance reachable by the rockets it now fires from the U.S.-supplied High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS).

"As part of the USAI package, we will be providing Ground Launched Small Diameter Bomb to Ukraine," Brigadier General Patrick Ryder told a news briefing at the Pentagon. USAI stands for Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI).

Friday's aid pledge opens the door to many more deliveries of the Ground Launched Small Diameter Bombs (GLSDB).

When the new rockets arrive, it will mark the first time Ukraine has seen its rocket range grow exponentially since U.S. furnished HIMARS in late-June 2022.

HIMARS have a 77km range and were instrumental in Ukraine's counter offensive against Russia.

A $1.725 billion portion of Friday's aid, comes from USAI funding, which allows President Joe Biden's administration to buy weapons from industry rather than from U.S. weapons stocks.

The USAI funds pledged would also be used to buy two HAWK air defense firing units, counter drone systems, counter artillery and air surveillance radars, communications equipment, PUMA drones, and medical supplies.

In addition to the USAI funds, $425 million worth of arms aid is coming from Presidential Drawdown Authority funds, which allows the president to take from current U.S. stocks in an emergency.

That aid includes more precision-guided munitions for HIMARS launchers, 190 heavy machine guns with thermal imagery sights and associated ammunition to counter drones, mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles, claymore anti-personnel mines and Javelin anti-tank weapons.

The U.S. has now pledged more then $29.3 billion worth of assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of the conflict.

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