Ukraine expresses confidence about continued US aid

Stopgap measure omitted backing for war effort

Ukraine’s government said Sunday it was confident that the United States would continue to support it in its war with Russia, even after the House passed a stopgap spending bill to avert a government shutdown that did not include any additional money for Kyiv.

The White House and leaders of both parties in the Senate had pushed for more Ukraine funding to be included in the bill, which passed late Saturday. Members of both parties said they were confident that further financial commitments would be agreed to, but the failure to do so on Saturday highlighted the decreasing willingness of some Republicans to fund Kyiv’s war effort.

President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine made the case for continued US support during a visit to Washington last month, and his office suggested Sunday that it was not unduly concerned.

“All key partners of Ukraine are determined to support our country until its victory in this war,” said Andriy Yermak, head of the president’s office, in a post on the Telegram messaging app, adding that the Ukrainian government meets with both Republicans and Democrats. “The Ukrainian delegation returned from the United States of America with clear confidence that there are no changes in support.”

Although the stopgap bill did not contain additional support for Ukraine, it continues funding at current levels for 45 days and will not immediately affect the pipeline of US military aid. The Pentagon still has the authority to draw about $5.6 billion in arms and equipment from existing stockpiles, and the bill keeps in place a program to send money to Ukraine for purposes including training troops.

President Biden welcomed passage of the stopgap bill, but said Sunday there was “an overwhelming sense of urgency” to secure additional funding for Ukraine, which he promised to deliver.

Biden, who has sought an additional $24 billion for Ukraine — on top of about $113 billion in military, humanitarian and economic aid that Congress has approved — said leaving that money out of the bill had put Ukrainians in danger. “I can’t believe those who voted for supporting Ukraine, an overwhelming majority in the House and Senate, Democratic, Republican, will for purely political reasons let more people die needlessly in Ukraine.”

The Ukrainian government was “actively working with American partners” to ensure that the new budget includes more aid for Ukraine, said a spokesperson for Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry, Oleh Nikolenko, in a statement on Facebook.

“Support for Ukraine remains unwaveringly strong within the US administration, in both parties and chambers of the US Congress, and most importantly, among the American people,” he added.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy signaled on CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday that he is willing to make a deal to keep military assistance flowing to Ukraine, but that such an agreement would depend on Congress making significant changes to border security.