SERGEY SHESTAK/AFP via Getty Images)
- The Biden administration is asking Congress to approve billions more in aid for Ukraine.
- A US official said the money would cover the cost of the war through the end of the year.
- The US has provided Ukraine more than $100 billion in security and financial assistance since 2022.
The Biden administration on Thursday formally asked Congress for billions more in aid to help Ukraine during its stalled counteroffensive against Russia, setting up a fight with a Republican-led House where there is growing skepticism of Washington's support for Kyiv.
In a letter addressed to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, the White House requested more than $24 billion for assistance to Ukraine and other "international needs."
The request includes $13.1 billion for equipment and other military assistance to Ukraine, as well as the cost of replenishing the United States' own diminished weapons stockpiles. It also asks Congress for $7.3 billion in economic, humanitarian, and security assistance to Ukraine and other countries impacted by Russia's invasion.
The new, supplemental request would cover the projected cost of aiding Ukraine through the end of the year, a senior administration official said on a call with reporters.
"We don't know how much longer this war is going to go on or how much more assistance we might need to support Ukraine," the official said. "We won't be bashful about going back to Congress beyond the first quarter of next year if we feel like we need to do that."
The money is on top of the $6 billion that the White House requested earlier this year as part of the 2024 budget. Since the invasion, the US has provided Ukraine with more than $100 billion in security and financial assistance.
The request comes alongside the Biden administration's request for supplemental funding toward disaster relief and the border.
Come the end of the fiscal year, temporary pay raises for wildfire firefighters will vanish without action from Congress. The Biden administration also wants to replenish the coffers of FEMA, which is now contending with wildfires raging across the country. But helping pay firefighters more and combat extreme weather might be an easier sell: Bipartisan lawmakers have already called for permanent pay increases for firefighters.
Ukraine could prove tougher.
While polls show most Americans oppose Russia's invasion of Ukraine, recent surveys have suggested there is diminished support for aiding Ukraine's military resistance. Earlier this month, a survey conducted for CNN found a slim majority now oppose more aid for Ukraine, including 71% of Republicans. Former President Donald Trump, the frontrunner for the GOP presidential nomination, recently called for aid to be suspended while Congress investigates Hunter Biden's business dealings in Ukraine.
Despite the vocal misgivings of Trump and his allies in Congress, most members of Congress, from both parties, continue to support aid for Ukraine. Last month, when Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Florida Republican, put forward an amendment to block all future assistance, it was voted down by a 358-70 supermajority.