Ukraine aid tests US bipartisan support

US President Joe Biden asked Congress to approve about $40 billion in additional spending on Thursday, including $24 billion for Ukraine and other international needs, $4 billion related to border security and $12 billion for disaster relief.

A senior administration official said the needs were great, and the White House was hopeful an agreement could be reached with Congress on the request, which covers only the first quarter of the current 2024 fiscal year.

Since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in February 2022, Congress has authorized $113 billion in overall funding related to Ukraine. If the new package is approved, that total will reach about $137 billion.

But the request could face opposition in Congress, where some far-right Republicans — especially those with close ties to former president Donald Trump — want to pare back the billions in assistance Washington has sent to Kyiv since 2022.

Trump, the front-runner in the race to be the Republican presidential nominee in 2024, has been sharply critical of US support for Ukraine in the conflict. And 70 House members backed an unsuccessful proposal in July to cut funding for Ukraine.

The Biden administration's request came after a poll from CNN found that 55 percent of people in the United States are against more spending on the conflict in Ukraine.

There is also a difference in opinion between House and Senate leadership on Ukraine funding.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell both support continuing aid to Ukraine.

Speaking on Wednesday in Louisville, Kentucky, McConnell said most of the money that was spent related to Ukraine was actually spent in the US, replenishing weapons and more modern weapons.

"So it's actually employing people here and improving our own military for what may lie ahead," he said.

In response to McConnell's comments on Thursday, Mick Wallace, a member of the European Parliament from Ireland, wrote on X, formerly Twitter: "A lot of politicians and mainstream media are happy to continue supporting and fueling the#US #NATO proxy war in Ukraine — these are not the people dying in this stupid war. How much do these people really care about the working class Ukrainians who are dying?"

"The Biden administration encouraged Ukraine to integrate into NATO & assault Donbas. It refused to seriously address Russia's December 2021 proposals," Canadian journalist Aaron Mate wrote on X. "It blocked a peace deal. It then pushed Ukraine into a counteroffensive it knew had no chance. Then it told Ukraine it won't join NATO anyway. Now it wants another $20.6 billion to prolong the war it provoked."

Agencies contributed to this story.