Biden finds "another way" to help Ukraine – Politico

US President Joe Biden's administration is considering using a State Department grant programme to send additional military assistance to Ukraine.

Source: Politico, referring two US officials

Details: According to the media outlet, President Joe Biden hinted at this strategy on Wednesday, saying that "there is another means by which we may be able to find funding for that". He declined to comment further.

One official said the president's comments referred to "existing funding authorities" that Congress had previously granted the administration "that allow us to provide additional support to Ukraine for a bit longer if Congress doesn’t act."

One option under consideration is the use of foreign military financing, a programme run by the State Department that provides grants or loans to help partner countries purchase weapons and defence equipment.

The outlet notes that even if the US uses its financial authority to purchase weapons, Congress must still authorise additional funding to support Ukraine.

The administration could also potentially ask Congress to redirect funding from the Pentagon's budget to support Ukraine, according to a Defence Ministry official. However, this route would require legislative approval.

Brigadier General Patrick Ryder said no decision has been made on which route the department will take: "Reprogramming is always an option for urgent needs. At this time right now, though, to my knowledge, no decision has been made on using reprogramming as a way to support Ukraine security assistance."

Background: 

• Out of the US$25.9 billion allocated by Congress to replenish the stockpile of weapons that were sent to Ukraine, only US$1.6 billion remained. 
• In addition, the United States has about $5.4 billion left to supply weapons and equipment from its stockpile. The United States would have exhausted these funds by now if the Pentagon had not realised earlier this year that it had overestimated the equipment it had already sent.

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