Washington — President Biden on Thursday will call on Congress to provide $33 billion in additional security, economic and humanitarian assistance for Ukraine and unveil a legislative proposal aimed at bolstering the federal government’s ability to hold the Russian government accountable for the invasion.
Mr. Biden is expected to discuss his requests to Congress in remarks on “support for Ukrainians defending their country and their freedom against Russia’s brutal war,” the White House said. The president’s remarks come one week after he announced another $800 million round of security assistance to help Ukraine bolster its defenses against Russia’s intensifying offensive in the country’s east.
In announcing the military aid last week, Mr. Biden revealed he had “almost exhausted” the $3.5 billion in drawdown authority authorized by Congress for Ukraine in last month’s bipartisan spending bill. He said that “in order to sustain Ukraine for the duration of this fight,” he would be seeking more money from lawmakers “to keep weapons and ammunition flowing without interruption to the brave Ukrainian fighters and to continue to deliver economic assistance to the Ukrainian people.”
“There is no doubt that continuing to support Ukraine in this war against Russian aggression will require a substantial additional investment on our part,” Mr. Biden said in a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi requesting the security and economic aid for Ukraine. “What I want to make clear to the Congress and the American people is this: the cost of failing to stand up to violent aggression in Europe has always been higher than the cost of standing firm against such attacks. That is as it always has been, and as it always will be. America must meet this moment, and do its part.”
Of the $33 billion requested for Ukraine, $20.4 billion would go to additional security and military assistance, providing Ukraine and Eastern flank allies with more artillery, armored vehicles and anti-armor and anti-air capabilities, according to the White House.
An additional $8.5 billion in economic assistance would go toward keeping Ukraine’s government functions continuing and countering Russian disinformation, while $3 billion in humanitarian assistance would support resources to address worldwide food security needs, which experts warn could be exacerbated by the war.
To address domestic food production, the White House’s supplemental funding request includes $500 million to support production of U.S. crops experiencing a global shortage because of the conflict.
“The president’s funding request is what we believe is needed to enable Ukraine’s success over the next five months of this war,” a senior administration official told reporters.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Wednesday that passing Ukraine funding and approving another round of COVID-19 pandemic relief demands “swift and bipartisan action.” But it’s unclear how quickly the request will move through the Senate, as the $10 billion COVID bill has become ensnared in a debate over immigration and border policy.
The White House said Mr. Biden’s proposal for a comprehensive legislative package targeting the Russian government and oligarchs “will establish new authorities for the forfeiture of property linked to Russian kleptocracy, allow the government to use the proceeds to support Ukraine, and further strengthen related law enforcement tools.”
The multi-pronged plan would streamline the administrative authority to seize and forfeit assets from oligarchs; enable the transfer of proceeds from forfeited property to Ukraine as redress for Russia’s war; allow for the forfeiture of property used by oligarchs to evade sanctions; bolster the U.S.’s ability to investigate and prosecute sanctions evasion; extend the statute of limitations to pursue money laundering prosecutions from five years to 10 years; and improve the government’s ability to work with foreign partners to recover assets tied to foreign corruption.
Across its nine-week war in Ukraine, Russian forces have suffered setbacks, failing to capture the capital of Kyiv, but entered a new phase of the invasion, turning its attention to Ukraine’s eastern industrial region.
The General Staff of Ukraine’s military said Thursday that Russian troops were “exerting intense fire” around Donetsk and near Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city. In the eastern Donbas region, a focus for Russia, the General Staff said Ukrainian forces have fought back against six attacks.
Ihor Lapin, Ukrainian special forces battalion commander, told CBS News that his forces need high-caliber ammunition to go up against Russia’s firepower.
The U.S. has continued to flow weapons systems and munitions systems into Ukraine, with more than half of the howitzers the U.S. has committed delivered, Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said Wednesday. More than 50 Ukrainian fighters have also finished training on the howitzers in a country outside of Ukraine, and a second group is set to begin training soon, he said.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a secret visit to Kyiv on Sunday, becoming the highest-level U.S. officials to visit the capital since the start of Russia’s war. During their meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, they vowed to provide more military financing.
Sara Cook contributed to this report
