The White House has reiterated its call on Congress to allocate supplemental funding for Ukraine amid its war with Russia, as U.S. financial support is set to run out.
“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 U.S. military stocks,” she wrote.
Ms. Young went on to say that the money does not come out of nowhere.
“There is no magical pot of funding available to meet this moment,” she wrote. “We are out of money—and nearly out of time.”
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the United States has allocated $111 billion for Kyiv.
Ms. Young warned of the consequences of not continuing to support Ukraine.
“Cutting off the flow of U.S. weapons and equipment will kneecap Ukraine on the battlefield, not only putting at risk the gains Ukraine has made, but increasing the likelihood of Russian military victories,” she wrote.
“Already, our packages of security assistance have become smaller, and the deliveries of aid have become more limited,” Ms. Young continued. “If our assistance stops, it will cause significant issues for Ukraine. While our allies around the world have stepped up to do more, U.S. support is critical and cannot be replicated by others.”
The Department of Defense has sent 97 percent of funds it has received from Congress toward Ukraine, or more than $60.43 billion.
The Biden administration has requested $60 billion in supplemental assistance for Ukraine, prompting outrage from conservatives and numerous congressional Republicans.
Mr. Johnson has been receptive to supporting Ukraine—but not unconditionally.
“Ukraine is another priority. Of course, we can’t allow Vladimir Putin to march through Europe,” he said on Nov. 27, remarking on the need to support both Israel and Ukraine.
“We understand the necessity of assisting there. What we’ve said is that if there is to be additional assistance to Ukraine—which most members of Congress believe is important—we have to also work on changing our own border policy.”
In a Nov. 26 letter to colleagues, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), decried that the border contingency “jeopardize[s] the entire national security supplemental package.”
Mr. Schumer is expected this week to bring forth a bill with what the Biden administration has requested in additional funding.
“The biggest holdup to the national security assistance package right now is the insistence by our Republican colleagues on partisan border policy as a condition for vital Ukraine aid,” said Mr. Schumer. “This has injected a decades-old, hyper-partisan issue into overwhelmingly bipartisan priorities.”
The House speaker and Senate majority leader both said negotiations between the GOP and Democrats regarding the supplemental package are ongoing.
Ms. Young said that supporting Ukraine is more than just about the country itself and that Congress’ decision on whether to still support the Eastern European country will be consequential.
“It prevents larger conflict in the region that could involve NATO and put U.S. forces in harm’s way and deters future aggression, making us all safer,” she said.
As President [Joe] Biden has said, when dictators do not pay a price for their aggression, they will cause more chaos and death and destruction,” said Ms. Young.
“They just keep on going, and the cost and the threats to America and to the world will keep rising.”
