US House Intelligence Committee Head doubts Ukraine aid approval by end of year
Republican Mike Turner, House Intelligence Committee Chairman, said that new US aid to Ukraine and Israel would be difficult to approve by the end of the year.
Source: Turner on NBC's Meet the Press, Bloomberg reports
Quote: "I think it would be very difficult to get it done by the end of the year and the impediment, currently, is the White House policy on the southern border."
Details: Turner stated that "Congress is going to require that there’ll be laws changed to make certain that the border returns to its prior state." According to Turner, this may include restricting the entry of asylum seekers across the Mexican border and other measures to ensure its security.
Republicans in Congress are seeking to tie their approval of foreign military aid to stricter border policies after President Joe Biden signed a stopgap bill that extended funding for the US government until early next year.
Congress returns to work this week, with bills on Israel and Ukraine on the agenda.
"In return for providing additional funding for Ukraine, we have to have significant and substantial reforms to our border policy," Senator Tom Cotton said on Fox News Sunday.
Background:
- Earlier, Pentagon Chief Lloyd Austin assured that his department would continue to work to approve additional funding for Kyiv's defence and other needs in the US Congress.
- US President Joe Biden is trying to convince the US Congress to support aid to both Ukraine and Israel and to approve a new US$106 billion aid package, which includes more than US$61 billion in funding for Ukraine.
- Leaders of the US Congress hope to collect the votes for additional aid for Ukraine and Israel, as well as for the improvement of the immigration system, by Christmas.
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