Biden administration asks Congress to authorize use of $6 billion for Ukraine that could be 'burned' - Reuters
Kyiv • UNN
The Biden administration is negotiating with Congress to use $6 billion in military aid to Ukraine by September 30. The funds could be “burned” if no solution is found.
The administration of US President Joe Biden is holding urgent talks with Congress to get permission to use $6 billion in military aid to Ukraine, which could "burn up" on September 30. Reuters writes about this with reference to several sources familiar with the issue, UNN reports.
The Presidential Decision Order (PDA), a key component of the $61 billion aid package to Ukraine approved in April, allows the US president to transfer defense goods and services from US stockpiles in response to emergencies.
The PDA has been the primary mechanism used by the Biden administration to deliver weapons to Ukraine. Most recently, on August 23, the administration announced a new $125 million military aid package. This includes air defense missiles, anti-drone equipment, anti-tank missiles, and ammunition.
However, most of the $7.8 billion allocated for PDA in the bill Biden signed in April has not been used, so officials are scrambling to find a way to keep the remaining $6 billion as we approach the September 30 end of fiscal year 2024.
Sources close to the negotiations told Reuters that the State Department hopes to include an extension of the PDA's authority in a continuing resolution, a short-term emergency spending bill that the Senate and House of Representatives must pass this month to avoid a government shutdown on September 30.
Aides in Congress insist that a solution will be found, given the strong bipartisan support for helping the government of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Congressional aides said it was unclear why arms shipments to Ukraine have slowed this year, but said it was partly due to the U.S. Department of Defense's concern that its own stockpile was being depleted.
Addendum
Zelenskiy plans to travel to the US this month and hopes to present Biden with a "Victory Plan". On Friday, September 6, he is expected to participate in a meeting in the Ramstein format.
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