White House says time running out to support Ukraine's fight against Russia

Shalanda Young, who is the White House budget chief, issued a warning to the US Congress on Monday (Dec 4) that failure to agree to fresh funds for Ukraine by the end of the year would impact Kyiv severely on the battlefield.

In a letter to the House Speaker, the Office of Management and Budget director said: "I want to be clear: without congressional action, by the end of the year we will run out of resources to procure more weapons and equipment for Ukraine."

She further added that cutting off the flow of US weapons and equipment will "kneecap" Ukraine on the battlefield amid the ongoing war.

Since the war started last year on February 24, the US has sent more than $75 billion in assistance to Ukraine, including humanitarian aid, financial, and military support.

United States President Joe Biden in October asked Congress to approve $61.4 billion for Ukraine, $14.3 billion for Israel, and $9.15 billion for humanitarian aid in the two countries and the Gaza Strip.

The Biden Administration has also said that the process of sending aid to war-ravaged Ukraine has helped the US states, primarily Pennsylvania, Arizona, and Texas.

But the request has not been approved as the Congress has been paralysed for months by Republican infighting, with hard-right lawmakers particularly opposing any further assistance for Kyiv as the war drags on.

When new Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson took office in October after his predecessor Kevin McCarthy was ousted by a right-wing coup, the main focus of the Congress was to avert a chaotic government shutdown, which they did over the Thanksgiving holiday in November.

Watch:Russian forces intensify attack on Ukraine

Young's warning

The deal to keep the lights on until mid-January left out aid to America's key allies. In her letter, Young said that by that time it would be too late and funds for Ukraine would have already dried up.

"There is no magical pot of funding available to meet this moment. We are out of money -- and nearly out of time," Young wrote.

She underlined that if the US fails to agree more funding, it would increase the chance of Russian military victories. It will also put Ukraine's gains so far at risk.

"This isn't a next year problem. The time to help a democratic Ukraine fight against Russian aggression is right now. It is time for Congress to act," she wrote.

This comes amid Ukraine's desperate calls for more foreign aid. Meanwhile, Russian forces have stepped up attacks in the east after holding back Kyiv's much-vaunted counteroffensive.

(With inputs from agencies)

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