Biden administration weighs tapping US military funds to bolster Ukraine aid – Bloomberg
The administration of US President Joe Biden is considering the possibility of using US military funds for Ukraine, as the bill on additional funding is still blocked, reported Bloomberg, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter.
The White House is currently weighing whether it can raise about $200 million in funding for the U.S. military to provide immediate support to Ukraine, as a larger $61 billion aid package remains deadlocked in Congress.
The funding could be used to pay for critical weapons and equipment, the sources said, as Ukraine faces an artillery shortage amid small territorial advances by Russian forces in recent weeks.
The debate over the use of a small amount of Pentagon reserve funds underscores the White House's "furious effort" to find any possible support for Ukraine, Bloomberg writes. But at the same time, the possible funding is "minuscule" compared to $61 billion in aid to Ukraine, which Biden is asking congressmen for.
The final decision has not yet been made, said one of the sources.
On February 14, Biden called on the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, to immediately put to a vote a bill on aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.
On February 26, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Johnson had promised him to do "everything" to continue aid to Ukraine.
On February 28, Johnson said that he would put the continuation of aid to Ukraine to a vote "in a timely manner", but the priority is the border with Mexico.
On February 29, Congress leaders at a meeting with Biden could not agree on aid to Ukraine.
