Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin speaks to reporters at a Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting Sept. 19, 2023, at Ramstein Air Base, Germany. On Oct. 11 in Brussels, Austin said the U.S. would help Ukraine with its most urgent defense needs, while also making sure Israel has sufficient arms for its war against Hamas. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes)

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced Wednesday that the U.S. will send another $200 million in new weaponry to Ukraine while also signaling that the Pentagon was gearing up to support Israel in its war against Hamas.

Austin, during a meeting of allied and partner defense chiefs at NATO headquarters in Brussels, said the new security package for Ukraine includes munitions for a new air defense system, artillery, anti-tank and anti-drone weapons.

“We’re here to dig deep to meet Ukraine’s most urgent needs,” Austin said at the start of talks that also centered around the unfolding war in Israel and Gaza.

Austin, flanked by Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Charles Q. Brown and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said U.S. support for Israel’s security “will remain ironclad.”

“We will stay in close contact with our Israeli partners and ensure that they have what they need to protect their country,” Austin said.

On Thursday, NATO leaders in Brussels will be briefed about the security situation in Israel by that country’s defense chief, Yoav Gallant. The war in Israel has threatened to overshadow the two-day meeting of NATO defense ministers, whose focus for the past 19 months has been on finding ways to bolster Ukraine’s military in its war against Russia.

Last week, a top NATO commander warned that allies were running out of ammunition to send to Kyiv and cautioned that industry needed to ramp up production if the West wants to keep the arms flowing.

“The bottom of the barrel is now visible,” Dutch Adm. Rob Bauer, head of NATO’s Military Committee, said during a discussion at the Warsaw Security Forum.

Now, Israel’s war could potentially exacerate the situation given the existing strain on weapons stocks.

Austin, however, insisted that the U.S. will be able to deliver what is required to both Israel and Ukraine.

“Absolutely we can do both and we will do both,” Austin said. “We’re going to do what’s necessary to help our allies and partners and we’re going to also do what’s necessary to make sure that we maintain the capability to protect our interests and defend our country.”

On Monday, Army Secretary Christine Wormuth said the service is prepared to “lean forward” when it comes to delivering arms to Israel, but that lawmakers will need to step up funding to ensure that the needs of both Ukraine and Israel can be met.

Already, the U.S. has begun sending critical munitions to Israel along with interceptors to replenish Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system.

But questions loom over the defense industry’s ability to meet the demand for munitions and arms.

“Upholding U.S. commitments to supply Israel with the munitions and equipment necessary to fend off Hamas while simultaneously sustaining Ukraine’s fight against Russia is an expensive undertaking,” said Kathryn Levantovscaia, an analyst with the Atlantic Council think tank, in a statement Tuesday.

Even if Congress can put aside differences and come to an agreement on emergency appropriations to speed up production, there are uncertainties about whether an industrial base built around a “just-in-time” business model has the raw material to meet the moment, she said.

“Inventories are practically nonexistent,” Levantovscaia said.

Still, Austin said allies remain committed to ensuring Ukraine gets the weapons it needs to eventually beat back the Russian military.

The war in Ukraine is at a critical point, as Ukrainian forces push slowly ahead with a counteroffensive and brace for another winter when energy infrastructure will likely be targeted once again by Russian missiles.

“We should be ready for the Kremlin to again bombard Ukraine this winter with cruise missiles and drones,” Austin said. “We should expect Putin’s forces to cruelly and deliberately put Ukrainian cities, civilians and critical infrastructure in their gunsights by turning civilians into targets.”

The stakes of the war extend beyond Ukraine, he said.

“Ukraine matters because Russian aggression clearly challenges our NATO allies,” Austin said.

Meanwhile, Zelenskyy said the Kremlin’s aspirations “have never been limited to Ukraine.”

“We all want these ambitions to be defeated in Ukraine, as soon as possible (so that) we don’t have to look for shells and supply tanks to other countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, that the Russian dictator may try to turn into ruins,” Zelenskyy said.