White House says clock is ticking on US funding for Ukraine
Biden administration needs congressional action by year's end to keep helping Kyiv defend itself against Russia
04 December 2023 - 17:25
by Jeff Mason
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A rescuer works at a site of a facility of the Darnytsia Car Repair Plant damaged by missile strikes in Kyiv, Ukraine. Picture: VALENTYN OGIRENKO/REUTERS
Washington — White House budget director Shalanda Young warned in a letter to Republican House speaker Mike Johnson and other congressional leaders on Monday that the US was running out of time and money to help Ukraine fight off Russia.
President Joe Biden’s administration in October asked Congress for nearly $106bn to fund ambitious plans for Ukraine, Israel and US border security.
Republicans control the House of Representatives with a slim majority, and funding for Ukraine has become politically controversial with some right-leaning legislators.
Young said in a letter released by the White House that cutting off funding and a flow of weapons to Ukraine would increase the likelihood of Russian victories.
“I want to be clear: without congressional action, by the end of the year we will run out of resources to procure more weapons and equipment for Ukraine and to provide equipment from US military stocks,” she wrote.
“There is no magical pot of funding available to meet this moment. We are out of money — and nearly out of time.”
The warning comes a week after a senior US state department official said Russian President Vladimir Putin is unlikely to to make peace in Ukraine before he knows the results of the November 2024 US election, amid concerns that a potential victory for former president Donald Trump could upend Western support for Kyiv.
Trump, who is seeking re-election in 2024 and is the leading candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, has been sharply critical of US support for Kyiv.
A senior official briefing reporters after a meeting of Nato foreign ministers in Brussels said the alliance reiterated its support for Ukraine knowing that a peace agreement in the next year is unlikely. “My expectation is that Putin won't make a peace or a meaningful peace before he sees the result of our election,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the outcomes of the meeting.
Asked whether they were expressing an opinion or the view of the US government, the official said it was a “widely shared premise”.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
White House says clock is ticking on US funding for Ukraine
Biden administration needs congressional action by year's end to keep helping Kyiv defend itself against Russia
Washington — White House budget director Shalanda Young warned in a letter to Republican House speaker Mike Johnson and other congressional leaders on Monday that the US was running out of time and money to help Ukraine fight off Russia.
President Joe Biden’s administration in October asked Congress for nearly $106bn to fund ambitious plans for Ukraine, Israel and US border security.
Republicans control the House of Representatives with a slim majority, and funding for Ukraine has become politically controversial with some right-leaning legislators.
Young said in a letter released by the White House that cutting off funding and a flow of weapons to Ukraine would increase the likelihood of Russian victories.
“I want to be clear: without congressional action, by the end of the year we will run out of resources to procure more weapons and equipment for Ukraine and to provide equipment from US military stocks,” she wrote.
“There is no magical pot of funding available to meet this moment. We are out of money — and nearly out of time.”
The warning comes a week after a senior US state department official said Russian President Vladimir Putin is unlikely to to make peace in Ukraine before he knows the results of the November 2024 US election, amid concerns that a potential victory for former president Donald Trump could upend Western support for Kyiv.
Trump, who is seeking re-election in 2024 and is the leading candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, has been sharply critical of US support for Kyiv.
A senior official briefing reporters after a meeting of Nato foreign ministers in Brussels said the alliance reiterated its support for Ukraine knowing that a peace agreement in the next year is unlikely. “My expectation is that Putin won't make a peace or a meaningful peace before he sees the result of our election,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the outcomes of the meeting.
Asked whether they were expressing an opinion or the view of the US government, the official said it was a “widely shared premise”.
Reuters
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