Agreement in Congress to extend military aid to Ukraine, Biden says

US president Joe Biden said on Sunday that Democrats and Republicans in Congress have reached an agreement to continue supporting Ukraine, something that American lawmakers wrangled over when averting a government shutdown.

The House and Senate narrowly avoided the shutdown hours before the deadline by passing a 45-day budget resolution while excluding the additional aid for Ukraine the White House had asked for.

Speaking at a press conference, Mr Biden hinted that Democratic and Republican lawmakers had struck a deal to support Ukraine.

When asked whether he still had confidence in House speaker Kevin McCarthy after he had withdrawn all of his demands for the continuing resolution—except for the exclusion of Ukraine aid.

"We just made [a deal] about Ukraine. So, we’ll find out," the US president replied.

While he did not explain the nature and content of the agreement, Mr Biden stressed that the US "cannot under any circumstance allow America’s support for Ukraine to be interrupted."

"I fully expect the Speaker to keep his commitment for the secure passage and support needed to help Ukraine as they defend themselves against aggression and brutality," he added.

The White House had asked Congress to provide USD 24 billion for Ukraine through the end of 2023.

The request seems to have been stuck in the House, where a right-wing group of the Republicans oppose any additional aid for Kyiv as it fends off Russia’s full-scale aggression.

The United States is the second largest financial donor to Ukraine in 2023.

Since the beginning of the year, the US has provided USD 9.7 billion in budget support to Ukraine, with only the European Union providing more—USD 13 billion.