Prague, Czech Republic - The US government is sending the Czech Republic an additional $200 million in military aid to help strengthen its military deterrence, including shoring up its defenses against Russia, the US embassy in Prague said on Thursday.

The money will also be used to replace Czech weapons that were sent to Ukraine for its defense in the nearly year-long fight against Russia, which invaded its neighbor last February 24.

Czech Defense Minister Jana Černochová said the support was a "sign of recognition" for her country's ongoing aid to Ukraine. Ukrainian soldiers, among others, are currently being trained at the Libavá military training area.

The new US financial aid comes on top of $100 million that Congress approved for the Czech Republic in September.

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Meanwhile, a new armaments project calls for the delivery of around 100 off-road vehicles, each equipped with two 14.5-millimeter machine guns, from the Czech Republic to Ukraine for anti-aircraft purposes.

The United States and the Netherlands will finance the aid, the Czech news agency CTK reported, citing the state armaments agency Amos.

The improvized anti-aircraft defense is primarily intended to be used against drones.