Biden Requests $33 Trillion Budget Including Ukraine Support from US Congress

Disaster Relief Fund Added, Total $25 Billion Support Plan Submitted to Congress

U.S. President Joe Biden has requested a total budget support of $25 billion (approximately 33 trillion won) from Congress, including additional military aid to Ukraine, Bloomberg News reported on the 9th (local time).

The news agency, citing sources, reported that President Biden plans to soon submit a budget support plan totaling $25 billion to Congress, which includes $13 billion for defense budget for military aid to Ukraine and $12 billion for disaster relief funds.

The U.S. government has continued financial support for Ukraine by preparing additional aid packages as needed since the outbreak of the Ukraine war in February 2021, going through the process of obtaining congressional approval.

Previously, the U.S. Congress approved a large-scale support budget totaling $98.6 billion to date, including a $45 billion support package approved in December last year, and $40 billion and $13.6 billion in May and March 2022, respectively.

Russia suspended the Black Sea grain agreement last month and bombed key Ukrainian grain ports such as Odesa, destroying grain export infrastructure, escalating the Russia-Ukraine war into a wider conflict.

After Russia terminated the Black Sea grain agreement, Ukraine has concentrated attacks on Russian military facilities in the Black Sea. Since launching a major counteroffensive in June to reclaim territories occupied by Russia, Ukraine’s advance has slowed due to Russian defenses, prompting a strategy to target the Black Sea and shift the battlefield to Russian mainland.

However, as Ukraine’s counteroffensive operations have not produced significant results, there are criticisms within the U.S. that American weapons support is no longer very effective. CNN reported that despite counteroffensive offensives over the past 7 to 8 weeks, Ukraine has not been able to properly break through even the first line of Russia’s multi-layered defenses, and it is expected that pressure for ceasefire negotiations will intensify rather than continued war support for Ukraine.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

In this situation, the White House holds the position that a new additional support package must be passed in a timely manner so that Ukraine’s counteroffensive is not delayed. Several U.S. officials assessed that as autumn approaches, when weather and combat conditions worsen, the possibility of a Ukrainian counteroffensive may decrease, and support that enables Ukraine to make progress is necessary.

However, the House majority party, the Republican Party, has expressed negative views on additional support for Ukraine. Earlier in June, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a Republican, clearly stated his opposition to support for Ukraine that exceeds the defense budget limit, despite Ukraine’s urgent need for U.S. support as it prepares for a major offensive.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham also expressed opposition to cutting the defense budget to provide financial support for Ukraine, and Republican lawmakers continue to voice negative positions on support for Ukraine.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.