$39.8 Billion Aid To Ukraine Still Stumped By Congress Due To Covid Funding

Biden has been struggling since late April to get Congress to approve his appeal for a $33 million economic aid for Ukraine’s fight against the Russian invasion. Even though both democrats and republicans in the Senate agree to this decision, it was stumped due to an extra $10 million requested for Covid-19 relief in the United States. 

Even though both parties agree that it is crucial to get the financial aid to Ukraine as quickly as possible, along with the fact that Senator Mitt Romney helped negotiate the Covid-19 relief funding, the rest of his party continues to block the bill, meaning that neither part of the funding has been approved, according to CNBC News. 

Republicans have been insisting that in order for them to pass the relief fund, they must first be able to vote on Biden’s ending of the controversial Title-42 decision which allowed border agents to turn away migrants in the southern border due to the pandemic. Most republicans thought it ended too soon and want to implement it again.

Due to this pressure, on May 9th, 2022 Biden asked Congress to put the Covid-19 relief aid to the side and to pass the economic aid for Ukraine in the meantime. The money would go into military support, from equipment to armored vehicles and artillery, according to CNN News. 

As of today, the official budget for Ukraine would be $39.8 billion with an increase of $3.4 billion for military equipment. It is still important for Biden’s administration to pass the Covid-19 relief fund, but have found it necessary to put it to the side to possibly have the Ukraine economic aid pass first since it is an urgent matter where civilians and soldiers continue to die as war tracks on.