The U.S. Department of Defense is expediting the process of providing security aid to Ukraine so that the money could come as quickly as possible, Lt. Col. Thomas Campbell, a defense department spokesperson, has said.
“Congress did not direct accelerated obligation of the funds. The Department is nonetheless expediting the process of implementing the authorized assistance to Ukraine and is committed to obligating these funds as quickly as possible in accordance with contracting procedures as required by law,” he told CNN.
On November 15, the Defense Department informed the congressional defense oversight committees that $35.2 million of the $250 million in Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) funds, which had been subject to the hold by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) at the direction of the White House, remain unspent. $15.5 million of the unspent funds are intended for lethal equipment and radars.
On November 18, Senate Democrats sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper demanding answers regarding the Trump Administration’s continued delay of military aid to Ukraine.
According to senators, the hold on USAI funds by the Office of Management and Budget at the direction of the White House “is why these funds remain in the U.S. Treasury, rather than with Ukraine as Congress intended.”
Previously, Congress passed a continuing resolution that provided the Defense Department the authority to keep spending the money until September 30, 2020.
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It is possible that the impeachment inquiry may actually help Ukraine.
The press frenzy surrounding it provides Ukraine with an international spotlight and many are becoming aware of the miracle of 2014 and the people’s sacrifices for democracy.
It’s all BS. Right from the beginning when Obama refused to distribute the aid HE signed. And now with Trump and trying to make sure Ukraine is fighting corruption. We would be even more upset if most of the money went into oligarchs hands instead of the military.
The military, occupied citizens and IDP’s should not have to suffer for politics or corruption. The US should, in my opinion, distribute the aid itself instead of allocating money that could be siphoned off. It’s just red tape.
My comment was about how the international publicity could actually help Ukraine.
the impeachment story has garnered Ukraine far more international attention than it has enjoyed in the previous twenty-eight years of its independent existence.
The true significance of the current global spotlight only becomes apparent when viewed in the context of Ukraine’s historic problems with international anonymity. This low profile is no accident. It is the product of longstanding and remarkably successful Russian efforts to suppress Ukrainian identity and prevent the emergence of a separate Ukraine.
Exactly right. The worst thing (as Scradge used to remind us often) is for Ukraine to become known only as the place for Chernobyl, corruption and Trump’s impeachment instead of fighting on the front line for democracy, dignity, freedom and justice.
Nice post btw SA!
I find it interesting to see that the BBC, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, and Financial Times have all officially adopted the Ukrainian-language “Kyiv” spelling when referring to the nation’s capital. This small but symbolically significant gesture offers a hint of the broader shifts in outside perceptions that are already taking place.
Yes, it’s huge! Anything that will help pull the world away from RuSSki misinformation will really help Ukraine. It’s that daily dose of poison that makes people get used to the poison until it becomes a normal part of life. Even now, 6 years after the onset of Maidan, fewer people now say “The” Ukraine.
You may be right about this, Stanley. It’s sad that this is what it takes to put Ukraine into the spotlight instead of the Euromaidan and other significant events that happened since 2014.
Well said !!!
In 6 months haha
I’m always reminded to be glad that Ukraine has its own capabilities to defend itself from the mafioso mob. With so many boulders thrown its way by a West that propagates democracy and freedom yet is far too cowardly to step in and put its money where its big mouth is, this capability is essential. We’ve (the US) given Ukraine lots of aid since the post Obumer days, but with a McCain as president (God rest his soul), things would look much cheerier today than with the orange orangutang.
Amen.
LOL, I was with you until you contradicted yourself ;)) The orange orangutan would be better off if he quit letting the media prod him along and affect his foreign policy. It seems he does the opposite of what they say even when….on occasion….the media is correct. Yes I really said that…:)) Nevertheless, if Hillary did become president, there is no way she would have pissed off Vladolf and given Ukraine lethal weapons.
‘Hil(l)ary’ous! 😀