The issue of allocating new military support to the Armed Forces of Ukraine has finally escaped the deadlock, with a bill passed through the United States House of Representatives, the lower chamber of the U.S. parliament. After being put to vote by Republican Speaker Mike Johnson, it got 311 votes in favor.
Now, the document is handed over to the Senate, voting expected this Tuesday, followed by signature by the U.S. President. However, we should point out that not all of the almost $61 billion allocated will be spent to acquire weapons and military equipment for Ukraine.
Read more: U.S. House of Representatives Passes Bill to Provide $61 Billion in Aid to Ukraine
The aid package also encompasses $11.3 bln for U.S. operations in the region, including logistical support of the supplies for Ukraine, as well as $7.9 bln of financial assistance as a loan (with the option to discard 50% of the debt).
The provisions include $26 million for audit of supplies, $481 mln in support of Ukrainians in the U.S., $149 mln to the U.S. emergency management to keep updated on the nuclear threat in Ukraine, etc. Overall, those non-military articles amount to another $1.3 billion, as noted by Oksana Markarova, Ukraine's Ambassador to the United States.
The military provision itself will be:
- $13.8 billion to procure weapons for Ukraine through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) program by awarding contracts to American manufacturers;
- $1.6 billion to compensate for Ukraine's expenses on ordering U.S. weapons through the Foreign Military Financing program;
- $23.2 billion for the Pentagon to replenish the stocks of weapons and equipment sent to Ukraine.
Important to note, the last item in this list doesn't necessarily mean that all of the money given to the U.S. Department of Defense will be used for the Presidential Drawdown Authority (PDA), when the U.S. military sends its own weapons while simultaneously ordering new replenishments from local weapon makers. So far, various media argue about how these funds will be spent.
After all, the Pentagon has recently discovered a gap of $10 bln due to the difference between the value of weapons provided to Ukraine and the costs for their replacements. In other words, a portion of money with this aid package will be spent to fill the gap.
Read more: Lithuania Transfers L-39ZA Albatross Attack Aircraft to Ukraine: What Makes It Special?
