US Congress may go on winter vacation without approving aid to Ukraine
The proposal to extend the working week of both chambers of the United States Congress for an additional week to approve funding for Ukraine before Christmas was not supported by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson.
The White House believes that when important work is to be done, Republicans should not go home for the holidays, Rubryka reports, citing White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre during a briefing.
"As you heard from the President yesterday, the American people will not turn away from Ukraine and its fight for freedom against tyranny. Less so, Speaker Johnson said that the House of Representatives would finish its work tomorrow without agreeing on border issues, without funding for Israel, and without funding for urgent needs for Ukraine," said Jean-Pierre.
According to her, such a step only encourages potential aggressors on a global scale, such as Moscow, Beijing, and Tehran, who observe the actions of the US Congress.
"Republicans from the House of Representatives should not go home for the holidays when crucial steps need to be taken for the security of the United States and the world," said the White House spokesperson.
The US administration, and personally, President Biden, are making further efforts to encourage Congress to reach a compromise and approve additional funding for US national security needs, including support for Ukraine.
"I won't talk about what we're doing, what you don't see in the media, but our team continues to work very closely with members of Congress from both parties as they lead these negotiations. And we'll see how it develops," said White House National Security Council Coordinator John Kirby.
She also emphasized that the administration was urging lawmakers to pass a request for additional funding for national defense needs, which includes support for Ukraine and Israel.
"You saw that we announced another security assistance package for Ukraine yesterday. There are not many days left until the end of the year, so there are not many opportunities to provide defense assistance to Ukraine," US Security Advisor Kirby pointed out.
He stressed that President Biden personally continues to encourage lawmakers to act on this issue. According to him, the administration is ready to participate in "good-faith negotiations" and make compromises. However, he continued, both sides should do it to move forward.
"The President works very hard. The whole team is putting in a lot of effort," said the White House representative.
Assistance from the US and EU partner countries
The US is running out of funding allocated for military aid to Ukraine. In this regard, President Joe Biden has requested over $100 billion from Congress, including over $60 billion for Ukraine.
There are disagreements in Congress regarding this package, as Republicans demand additional proposals to enhance border security, especially with Mexico.
President of the United States, Joe Biden, called the possibility of stopping military aid to Ukraine "insanity."
He urged Congress not to give Russian dictator Vladimir Putin a "gift" and to approve aid to Ukraine before Congress goes on vacation.
Over a hundred high-ranking European MEPs signed an appeal to the United States Congress urging the approval of additional military aid to Ukraine to counter Russian aggression.
