On Monday, U.S. Senator JD Vance (R-OH) along with U.S. Representatives Chip Roy (R-TX-21) and Matt Gaetz (R-FL-01) sent a letter to the National Security Advisor to President Joe Biden, Jake Sullivan requesting clarification regarding “major discrepancies” between claims made by administration officials regarding American aid given to Ukraine.
This follows Sullivan stating at a White House press briefing on September 21st, 2023 that the Biden Administration had sent approximately $79.9 billion in aid to Ukraine since the Russian invasion in February 2022.
“What I will tell you is that we have supplied to the Congress every dollar that has been obligated. So if they are unaware, it’s because they are not looking at the reports that we are submitting to the Hill…And I find the claim in that letter somewhat bizarre. Roughly $47 billion in military assistance between PDA (Presidential Drawdown authority) and USAI (Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative), roughly $1 to $1.5 billion per month in direct budget support that is sent not directly to Ukraine but to the World Bank, so that the World Bank can ensure every amount, all of the amounts of that aid, those dollars are being appropriately spent. And then in the range of 10 or so billion dollars being spent for a range of humanitarian, energy and other purposes to ensure that the basic livelihoods of Ukrainians…” Sullivan said.
The lawmakers state that the White House Office of Management and Budget provided them with a spreadsheet that estimates that the appropriated amount of funding for the war in Ukraine and the countries impacted by the situation in Ukraine is at least $111 billion dollars a $31.1 bill gap from what Sullivan claims.
“You went on to state the amounts: […] This comes out to $79.9 billion. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has provided a spreadsheet that estimates the appropriated amount of funding for the war in Ukraine and countries impacted by the situation in Ukraine at $111 billion. The differential between these two figures is $31.1 billion, a gap larger than the administration’s latest Ukraine supplemental budget request. As a previous letter sent to the administration stated, “It is difficult to envision a benign explanation for this lack of clarity,” the lawmakers wrote.
Additionally, the lawmakers ask in their letter for Sullivan to provide information on the sources of funding, potential reprogramming from base monies that raised the overall spending, and the inclusion of extra money discovered in the Pentagon’s coffers.
The letter cites a news report from Politico which states that “In the event of a shutdown, funding for the shipments of weapons from DOD’s (Department of Defense) stockpiles would continue. The Pentagon can still use billions of dollars “recaptured” as part of a “revaluation process” after an accounting error turned up $6.2 billion of aid available to send weapons to Ukraine from DOD’s own coffers.” The lawmakers claim that this sum, which is absent from the OMB spreadsheet, significantly complicates the total amount of aid the U.S. provided to Ukraine.
“The administration stated on August 10 that “[p]revious supplemental appropriations for direct military aid, economic and humanitarian assistance, and other support have been committed or nearly committed,” yet somehow there are more funds available for the war in Ukraine,” the lawmakers wrote.
According to the lawmakers, they request that Sullivan clarify his remarks and clearly communicate the total budgetary resources provided for the war in Ukraine.
“We write to provide you the opportunity to clarify your remarks and communicate clearly the total budgetary resources across all government departments provided for the war in Ukraine and “in countries impacted by the situation in Ukraine,” as well as any other expenditures made by the U.S. taxpayer in connection to the conflict. Senators as well as members of Congress have raised consistent concerns about the forthrightness of this administration regarding the total figures for Ukraine aid and aid to countries impacted by the situation in Ukraine. Referring to constitutional oversight responsibilities as “bizarre” does nothing to assuage these legitimate reservations,” the lawmakers said.
According to Vance, what is bizarre is that the Biden administration does not know how much the U.S. has spent in Ukraine.
“Last week, Sullivan said it was “bizarre” to claim the admin has been unclear about spending in Ukraine. Then he misstated our commitment by about $31B. What’s bizarre is that the Biden admin doesn’t know how much we’ve spent in Ukraine,” Vance said.
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Hannah Poling is a lead reporter at The Ohio Star, The Star News Network, The Arizona Sun Times, and The Tennessee Star. Follow Hannah on Twitter @HannahPoling1. Email tips to [email protected].
