The United States will soon announce more than $2.3 billion in new security assistance for Ukraine, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Tuesday during a meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart at the Pentagon, Paralel.Az reports citing Reuters.

Austin also gave a nod to Ukraine's aspirations to eventually join NATO, more than two years after Russia's full-scale invasion. At next week's NATO summit in Washington D.C., Austin said: "We will take steps to build a bridge to NATO membership for Ukraine."