"Stuck" in the USA: Ukraine has not yet received $250 million in energy aid allocated during Biden's time - Reuters
Kyiv • UNN
Hundreds of millions of dollars in promised US energy aid to Ukraine have yet to be disbursed, raising concerns amid a harsh winter. The funds, intended for gas imports and infrastructure reconstruction, are stuck due to bureaucratic confusion and internal disputes within the Trump administration.
American and European officials are increasingly concerned that hundreds of millions of dollars in US energy aid promised to Ukraine have not yet been allocated, while a harsh winter is pushing the country's war-torn energy system to the brink of collapse. This is reported by Reuters, citing several sources familiar with the situation, writes UNN.
Details
According to sources, including US and Ukrainian officials, these funds were initially planned to be used for importing liquefied natural gas and restoring energy infrastructure damaged by Russian strikes. The US Agency for International Development (USAID), under the administration of former President Joe Biden, had already informed Congress of its intention to transfer at least part of these funds, said two sources who requested anonymity due to discussions of internal processes.
However, after USAID's operations were effectively curtailed in the first weeks of Donald Trump's presidency, some of the funds, according to sources, found themselves in a bureaucratic "limbo."
Some administration officials advocate for these funds to be allocated through the State Department, which now oversees the remnants of USAID's functions, sources note. Others insist on involving the Development Finance Corporation, a previously little-known federal agency that is predicted to play a key role in Ukraine's reconstruction.
History of pauses
The Trump administration has previously suspended or delayed aid to Ukraine. In particular, the US has repeatedly temporarily halted military aid — sometimes to pressure Kyiv within the framework of US-brokered peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv.
This time, the delay in energy aid, according to two sources, is not related to attempts to pressure Ukraine, but to bureaucratic confusion and internal disputes.
At the same time, the blocked aid — amounting to about $250 million, according to two sources — has caused increasing frustration in recent weeks, as Russian attacks on power plants and pipelines have left millions of Ukrainians vulnerable to brutal winter cold, said Ukrainian, American, and European officials, as well as two other informed individuals.
One source said that aides in the US Congress are aware of the frozen funds and are trying to obtain additional information.
A Ukrainian official noted that Kyiv is also aware of the situation, but fears raising the issue to avoid diplomatic consequences. US President Donald Trump has repeatedly reacted coolly to Ukraine's requests for aid.
Halyna Yusypiuk, spokeswoman for the Ukrainian embassy in Washington, said that Ukraine and the US are closely cooperating on energy issues.
"The Ukrainian and American sides are working daily to strengthen the resilience of Ukraine's energy system."
A spokesman for the Development Finance Corporation said the agency "works closely with all interagency partners to support Ukraine's reconstruction efforts and strengthen the shared economic security and prosperity of the United States and Ukraine."
The White House Office of Management and Budget, likely referring to a critical report by the USAID Inspector General, stated that in the past, energy aid funds to Ukraine were used inefficiently.
"Support for Ukraine's energy sector under the Biden administration was a disaster — a USAID Inspector General report shows that contractors in Ukraine likely lost millions of dollars in energy products due to lack of oversight, corruption, theft, etc."
Large-scale changes in the federal bureaucracy introduced by the Trump administration have complicated US efforts to provide aid to allies.
The effective liquidation of USAID, in particular, caused confusion about how and when funds should be allocated, several Reuters sources said.
In addition, the National Security Council, which in previous administrations coordinated interaction between intelligence, national security structures, and diplomatic agencies, was significantly reduced.
In addition, energy aid to Ukraine had previously been slow due to concerns about large-scale corruption in the country's energy sector, one of the interlocutors noted.