Biden's team calls on Congress to support almost US$12 billion in aid to Ukraine

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and USAID Director Samantha Power have written a letter and called on Congress to approve US$11.8 billion in budget support for Ukraine.

Source: a letter from White House officials quoted by European Pravda

Details: Key officials of the Biden administration explained that direct budgetary support for Ukraine was inextricably linked to its success on the battlefield, ensuring the functioning of the government and economy and allowing Ukraine to focus its resources on defence.

The letter indicates that the amount of support requested by the White House is less than the US$14.4 billion allocated in 2023 due to the US "investment in Ukraine's success and work to secure assistance from others". 

"Ukraine undertook painful measures to eliminate non-essential expenses and military spending comprises over 100 per cent of its tax revenues, making it entirely dependent on outside support to keep the government and economy functioning," the officials pointed out.

They added that the US$11.8 billion is the minimum amount needed to cover Ukraine's basic needs, and while Canada and the EU provide more support as a percentage of GDP, these and other sources are not enough to cover Ukraine's budget deficit.

Separately, White House officials have emphasised accountability and oversight of how budgetary support for Ukraine is spent, saying they are pushing Kyiv to implement reforms to combat corruption.

Background:

US President Joe Biden is trying to convince the US Congress to support aid to both Ukraine and Israel and approve a new US$106 billion aid package, which includes more than US$61 billion in funding to help Ukraine. The US$11.8 billion portion of this aid package is for budgetary support. 

However, Mike Johnson, the new Speaker of the US House of Representatives, insists that the aid packages for Ukraine and Israel should be considered separately by Congress and that the package for Ukraine should be considered together with the appropriation for border security with Mexico.

Read more: American storm around Ukraine: Options for future US assistance

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