White House planning 1 more Ukraine aid package before year’s end

The White House is planning to release one more package of military aid for Ukraine before the end of the year but warned it could be the last one until Congress acts to approve more assistance.

John Kirby, a White House spokesperson for national security issues, told reporters there would be another announcement of aid before the end of the month, though he could not provide specifics on the total sum or what will be included.

“When that is done, we’ll have no more replenishment authority available to us,” he told reporters.

“Ukraine still needs our help, and it’s well past time for Congress to act and stand up for freedom and democracy and our own national security interests, which are very much at play,” Kirby said.

The White House warned earlier this month that the U.S. would run out of money to provide military support to Ukraine by the end of the year without Congress passing additional funding.

The White House in late October sent an emergency funding request of roughly $100 billion to Congress seeking additional money for border security, allies in the Indo-Pacific and for Israel and Ukraine in their respective conflicts against Hamas and Russia.

Roughly $61 billion of that request covered money for Ukraine, which included $30 billion in equipment for Ukraine from Department of Defense stocks and to backfill those stocks.

Republicans, who control the House, have said Ukraine funding will have to be paired with a deal on immigration. Lawmakers have been engaged in talks in recent days trying to unlock a deal, and President Biden has said he’s willing to make compromises on border policy to secure an agreement for Ukraine aid.

Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle said Sunday they were “encouraged” with the direction the border security talks were going, but that the timing of the potential deal remained uncertain.