WASHINGTON – President Biden was forced to hold an emergency call with world leaders on Tuesday to reassure them of his continuing support of Ukraine — after Congress nixed military aid funding for the war-torn country in a continuing resolution over the weekend.
“The president reaffirmed the strong commitment of the United States to supporting Ukraine as it defends itself for as long as it takes, as did every other leader on the call,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said.
The call included heads of state and foreign ministers from Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, Poland, Romania, France and the United Kingdom, as well as the top leaders of NATO and the European Commission, he said.
The White House organized the call after Congress removed a provision that would have continued aid funding for Ukraine from a continuing resolution bill passed Saturday — in order to keep the government open for business for another 45 days.
Without the additional funding, deputy Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh told reporters on Tuesday that the US only has enough funding to meet Kyiv’s battlefield needs “for just a little bit longer.”
Kirby also warned that a lapse in support “for even a short period of time can make all the difference on the battlefield.”
“Just as critically, such a lapse in support will make [Russian President Vladimir] Putin believe that he can wait us out [and] continue the conflict until we and our allies and our partners fold,” he added.
While Biden, 80, has the authority to give Kyiv another $5.4 billion in weapons from current US stockpiles, there are no remaining Ukraine Security Assistant Initiative funds left to purchase new equipment for the country, Singh said.
The White House said more aid will soon be needed for the Pentagon to continue sending the packages that Kirby said have been sent every two weeks, on average.
Kirby said re-upping the funding is “particularly important” as the Defense Department “seeks to replenish its stocks” of weapons previously given in nearly 50 drawdown packages since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.
“Time is not our friend,” Kirby said.
“As Ukrainians wage a tough counteroffensive, as their children continue to get ripped from the bosom of their families, and as winter fast approaches, it is imperative that we help them take advantage of every single day.”
Biden, meanwhile, on Monday urged Republicans in Congress to push back against their handful of far-right colleagues who are calling to end the aid — telling reporters “we cannot under any circumstances allow American support for Ukraine to be interrupted.”
The president had told reporters on Sunday that he had reached a deal with since-unseated House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to secure Ukraine aid, but the White House was forced to walk back the comment a day later after Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) accused the speaker of reaching a “secret deal” with the Democrat president.
McCarthy also denied reaching such an agreement.
Kirby said Tuesday that Biden “looks forward to working with Congress” to ensure continued aid, adding that he “has every expectation that Speaker McCarthy will keep his public commitment to secure the passage of the support needed.”
However, McCarthy was ousted from his position in a historic floor vote just hours after Kirby made the comment.
With House leadership now in turmoil, it is unclear where the future of Ukraine funding will go – though Kirby has said the majority of Republicans support continuing the aid.
“As evidenced in today’s call, we know that the world is watching,” he said.
“US leadership has galvanized international support and … American leadership remains key to ensuring that support for Ukraine continues.”
“Countering Putin’s ability to wage war on a neighboring nation may actually prevent a larger conflict in which American troops might be needed, and it sends a strong signal to other would be aggressors who may be considering military action invasions of their neighbors territory that that sort of action is unacceptable and they will pay the consequences,” he added.