US congressmen are taking measures aimed at bringing a bill to a vote in the House of Representatives, bypassing its speaker Mike Johnson, that would provide funds for new military aid to Ukraine. This was reported on Wednesday by The Washington Post.
As noted in the publication, the Democrats in the lower house of Congress have submitted a resolution, according to which the Senate bill passed in February, which provides for the allocation of $ 95 billion in aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, can be put to a vote without Johnson’s approval. To do so, the resolution must have the support of 218 lawmakers, the publication notes. So far, it has been signed by about 180 members of the House of Representatives.
A similar document was developed by a group of congressmen from both parties. It stipulates that a bill will be put to a vote bypassing the Speaker, which would allocate funds to help Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, as well as to take measures to curb illegal migration to the United States. That resolution has so far been supported by only a little more than a dozen lawmakers.
As noted in the publication, Johnson does not intend to consider funds for Ukraine and other countries before finalising bills on further funding for US agencies. This should be done no later than 22 March.
The Washington administration has previously submitted to Congress a request for additional budget appropriations in the 2024 fiscal year, which began in the US on 1 October, primarily to provide assistance to Israel and Ukraine, as well as to counter China and Russia in the Asia-Pacific region. In total, the executive branch, led by President Joe Biden, would like to receive about $106 billion for these purposes. The fate of the request and alternative bills remains unclear. Several Republicans in the House and Senate have spoken out in recent months against continuing financial support for Kiev. Johnson has consistently warned that he intends to link further aid to Ukraine to tighter controls on the U.S. southern border.