WASHINGTON — Nearly $6 billion in U.S. aid to Ukraine will expire at the end of this month unless Congress votes to extend the Pentagon’s authority to send weapons from its stockpile to Kiev, U.S. officials say.
U.S. officials said the Biden administration has asked Congress to include the funding authority in a continuing resolution that lawmakers may be able to adopt before the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30 to fund the federal government and avoid a shutdown. Officials said they hope to extend the authority for another year.
They also said the Defense Department is looking at other options if that effort fails.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the funding talks, did not provide details about the options. However, they said about $5.8 billion in presidential withdrawal authority (PDA) will expire. Another $100 million in PDA does not expire at the end of the month, the officials said. The PDA allows the Pentagon to take weapons off the shelves and quickly send them to Ukraine.
They said there is just over $4 billion available in long-term funding through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative that does not expire at the end of the month. That money, which expires on Sept. 30, 2025, is being used to pay for weapons contracts that would not be delivered for a year or more.
Gen. C.Q. Brown, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Thursday that the Defense Department controller is providing options to senior defense and military leaders and that they will look at ways they can tap into PDA and USAI funding.
He said it could be important for Ukraine in preparing for the winter fighting.
“One of the areas where we can work with them … is air defense capabilities and the ability to defend their critical infrastructure,” Brown told reporters traveling with him to meetings in Europe. “It’s very important to Ukraine how they defend their national infrastructure, but also how they winterize their defenses so that they can slow down any kind of Russian advances during the winter months.”
Earlier Thursday, Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, the press secretary, noted that the PDA gives the Pentagon the ability to spend money from its budget to send military aid to Ukraine. Funding in the $61 billion supplementary bill for Ukraine passed in April, the ministry can reimburse for the weapons it ships.
“Right now, we’re still working with Congress to see if we can extend those powers so that we can continue to do capture packages,” Ryder said. “In the meantime, you’re going to continue to see capture packages. But we’re going to have a lot more to offer in the near future.”
The US has routinely announced new admissions packages, often two to three per month.
If lawmakers fail to act on PDA funding, it could be another major setback for Ukraine in its fight against Russia. This comes just five months after a deeply divided Congress finally overcame a long and devastating stalemate and approved new funding for Ukraine.
Delays in approving the $61 billion for Ukraine earlier this year created dire conditions on the battlefield, as Ukrainian troops ran low on ammunition and Russian forces made gains. Officials have blamed a months-long Congressional gridlock for Russia’s ability to seize more territory.
Since funding resumed, U.S. weapons have flowed into Ukraine, bolstering troops and aiding Kiev’s push into Russia’s Kursk region. Ukraine’s troops stormed over the border five weeks ago, placing Russian territory under foreign occupation for the first time since World War II.