On Monday, December 4, US President Joe Biden’s administration sent Congress an urgent warning about the need to approve tens of billions of dollars in military and economic aid to Ukraine.
Disputes in the US Congress could leave Ukraine without military aid. The White House has warned that funds allocated to aid Ukraine will run out before the end of the year. The situation is critical.
Reflected on the battlefield
“Without Congressional action by the end of the year, we will run out of resources to purchase more weapons and equipment for Ukraine, as well as to provide equipment from the US military stockpile,” OMB Director Shalanda Young wrote in the leaders of the Republican and Democratic parties.
He emphasized that Congress’s refusal to approve the new support would “bring Kyiv to its knees on the battlefield” and “also increase the likelihood of Russian military victories.”
“There is no magic pot of funding that will help us get through this work. We are running out of money and almost running out of time,” the official notes.
He recalled that military aid packages from the United States to Ukraine had become smaller.
Yang added that US support is critical and irreplaceable.
“If the Ukrainian economy collapses, they can’t continue fighting, period. Putin understands this, so Russia has made the destruction of the Ukrainian economy a central part of its strategy – as you can see in the it attacks Ukrainian grain exports and energy infrastructure,” it said. in a letter.
Young also said the money for Ukraine would benefit the American economy.
On October 20, the White House asked Congress for nearly $106 billion for Ukraine, Israel and other priority areas.
On November 2, the US House of Representatives, led by new Speaker Mike Johnson, passed a bill to allocate military aid to Israel totaling $14.3 billion. The project did not provide assistance to Ukraine.
Europe also plays football
The situation in the EU is no better. Disagreements with the European Union over the budget threaten the provision of 50 billion euros to Ukraine under a four-year aid program, the decision on which will be made at the summit on December 14-15, the Financial Times reports.
According to unnamed European officials, EU member states are far from reaching an agreement on replenishing the common budget, including funds for Ukraine.
EU efforts to reach a compromise have been hampered by the victory of the far-right led by Geert Wilders in last month’s Dutch election and a recent German court ruling limiting government borrowing.
A senior official said it would be “very, very difficult” to reach a budget deal.
“It is very important that support for Ukraine continues and that we Europeans play our part,” Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo told the Financial Times.
Are there any problems coming up?
Ukraine has warned that uncertainty over support packages from the US and Europe poses a risk to the country’s macro-financial stability. The 50 billion euros proposed by the EU are designed to maintain Kyiv’s solvency until 2027.
“This is the moment of truth. If you say that you support Ukraine, you should take a step forward,” said one of the interlocutors of the publication.
The publication calls EU funding for Ukraine a “political football” in the context of wider debates on EU budget priorities due to the commission’s decision to bundle Kiev’s support in the proposals with others more funding requests to fill the 2021-2027 budget.
The €50 billion for Ukraine, made up of €17 billion in grants and €33 billion in loans, is combined with requests for €15 billion in funds for migration, €10 billion in investment in “strategic technology” and almost €19 billion in interest payments EU joint borrowing.
At the last summit of EU leaders in October, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz dismissed the Commission’s calculations as “ridiculous”, according to several people who spoke during the closed debate.
Officials say EU budget negotiations will always be difficult but compromise is still possible. A revised package is expected to be proposed before the summit.
“I think the doom and gloom around this issue has been greatly exaggerated. We will not allow Ukraine to suffer a sovereign default,” said an EU official.
Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.