US nears 'bottom of the barrel' on Ukraine aid, but vows Congress support – State Dept
The US State Department is confident that Congress will approve the new aid package for Ukraine when it is brought to the floor for consideration, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said at a briefing on Tuesday.
The White House has made it clear that Congress should finance further support to Kyiv as soon as possible.
"We are at the bottom of the barrel when it comes to our ability to provide security assistance to Ukraine," Miller said.
He noted that Ukraine is in for a tough winter with Russia's attacks on critical infrastructure.
"I don’t think there’s any question about the Executive Branch’s support for Ukraine. We don’t think there’s any question about the Legislative Branch’s support for Ukraine. If you put funding for Ukraine in an up or down vote in front of both houses of Congress, it is our belief that it would pass," the diplomat said.
On October 20, 2023, US President Joe Biden called on Congress not to stop the supply of weapons to Ukraine. The White House has sent a request to Congress to allocate $106 billion in emergency funding to help Ukraine, Israel and strengthen US border security. In particular, $61.4 billion of them are intended for Ukraine.
According to an Ipsos poll conducted in mid-November, 41% of Americans support providing arms to Ukraine, which is 10% more than support for arms to Israel.
