The US transferred to Kyiv some of the weapons that Iran sent to the Houthis

The United States handed over to Ukraine small arms and ammunition confiscated during their shipment from Iranian forces to the Tehran-backed Houthi group operating in Yemen. American military personnel reported this on April 9.

As noted, the transfer of weapons to Kyiv took place last week: at a time when Ukraine is experiencing an acute shortage of ammunition to repel Russian attacks, Republican lawmakers in the United States are blocking the allocation of a new large aid package to Kyiv.

“On Thursday, the U.S. government transferred more than 5,000 AK-47 assault rifles, machine guns, sniper rifles, RPG-7s and more than 500,000 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition to the Ukrainian military,” the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement posted on in social networks. The American command emphasizes that the weapons will help Ukraine defend itself against Russian invasion.

The document notes that the number of weapons transferred is sufficient to equip one brigade, notes “Voice of America”.

The weapons and ammunition were seized between May 2021 and February 2023 from four vessels that were being used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to supply the Houthis in Yemen, CENTCOM said.

Since November 2023, the Houthis have carried out attacks on civilian ships in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea.

“Iran’s support for armed groups threatens international and regional security, our forces, diplomatic personnel and citizens in the region, and our partners. We will continue to do everything we can to shed light on and stop Iran’s destabilizing activities,” CENTCOM said.