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11/7/2023 Secretaries Yellen, Austin, Blinken and Administrator Power Urge Congress to Back Direct Budget Support for Ukraine |… Secretaries Yellen, Austin, Blinken and Administrator Power Urge Congress to Back Direct Budget Support for Ukraine November 7, 2023 WASHINGTON – Today, Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken, and USAID Administrator Samantha Power sent a letter to Congress urging approval of the Biden Administrationʼs request to provide $11.8 billion in direct budget support to Ukraine as part of the Presidentʼs national security supplemental package comprising military, security, economic, and humanitarian assistance that aims to preserve U.S. national security interests at a time of global challenges. Direct budget support to Ukraine is inextricably linked to its success on the battlefield in resisting Russiaʼs illegal invasion, by keeping the government and economy functioning and allowing Ukraine to focus its resources on its defense. This funding benefits from an unprecedented level of robust oversight and transparency, and is bolstered by significant budget support from the European Union, other G7 partners, and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The full text of the letter can be found here and is available below. The Honorable Mike Johnson Speaker U.S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515 The Honorable Charles Schumer Majority Leader United States Senate Washington, DC 20510 The Honorable Hakeem Je ries Democratic Leader U.S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515 https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy1885 1/4 11/7/2023 Secretaries Yellen, Austin, Blinken and Administrator Power Urge Congress to Back Direct Budget Support for Ukraine |… The Honorable Mitch McConnell Republican Leader United States Senate Washington, DC 20510 Dear Speaker Johnson, Leader Schumer, Leader Je ries, and Leader McConnell: The U.S. Departments of Treasury, Defense, and State and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) appreciate our continued engagement with Congress on the Administrationʼs National Security Supplemental Request for Fiscal Year 2024 intended to, among other vital things, help our ally Israel in its fight against Hamas and Ukraine in its existential defense against Putinʼs brutal invasion. This comprehensive package, comprising military, security, economic, and humanitarian assistance, aims to preserve U.S. national security interests at a time of dire global crises. Russiaʼs economic warfare, including attacks against Ukraineʼs grain exports and energy infrastructure, is an integral part of its illegal invasion strategy. If Russia can destroy Ukraineʼs economy, it will hobble the Ukrainian state to the point that it cannot defend itself on the battlefield. This aggression is not only an existential threat to Ukraine, but also a threat to global democracies and our own economic and national security. While our assistance—alongside that from the European Union, the G7, and the International Monetary Fund (IMF)—has helped the Ukrainian military and the Ukrainian people, Russia has bet that its aggression can outlast our collective resolve. We and our partners must continue to enable Ukraineʼs self-defense, across multiple domains, including economic ones. We want to draw your attention to how critical direct budget support is to Ukraineʼs ability to defend itself. Financial support to Ukraine is inextricably linked to its success on the battlefield. We therefore strongly urge you to provide $11.8 billion to Ukraine in direct budget support, a cornerstone of the Presidentʼs supplemental request. Our investments in Ukraineʼs success and our work to secure assistance from others will allow us to reduce our budget support from $14.4 billion in FY2023 to $11.8 billion in FY2024. Without adequate and timely direct budget support, Ukraine will be unable to defend itself and thwart Russiaʼs further encroachment toward NATO countries. Ukraine undertook painful measures to eliminate non-essential expenses and military spending comprises over 100 percent of its tax revenues, making it entirely dependent on https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy1885 2/4 11/7/2023 Secretaries Yellen, Austin, Blinken and Administrator Power Urge Congress to Back Direct Budget Support for Ukraine |… outside support to keep the government and economy functioning. U.S. budget assistance is essential for Ukraineʼs ability to defend itself against Russia and address the needs of its war-torn population alongside its military operation. Budget support has allowed Ukraine to continue providing the basic services of government to its people— paying teacher salaries, keeping hospitals and schools open, and supporting its first responders—while devoting all its domestically generated resources to fighting the war. Reducing or delaying direct budget support will imperil Ukraineʼs military e orts. The Administrationʼs request of $11.8 billion for direct budget support represents the minimum amount needed to help cover Ukraineʼs baseline needs, a er accounting for other possible international support. We want to be clear – we do not see a path to securing the funds Ukraine desperately needs without U.S. support at the levels we requested. U.S. direct budget support at the requested level is needed to keep Ukraineʼs access to $15.6 billion in IMF financing, which can be extended only if donors jointly fill Ukraineʼs remaining budget needs. Without this, Ukraine loses both the financing and the structure and reforms that an IMF program brings. Our allies and partners are stepping up; however, financing from others cannot make up for the large gap that would quickly emerge if the United States were to abandon its commitment to Ukraine: Canada and the EU are now giving more as a percentage of their GDP than the United States has this year. But these and other sources are not su icient or timely to backfill behind a gap if we pull back. Our request assumes that in 2024 three quarters of economic support to Ukraine will come from sources other than the United States. U.S. direct budget support to Ukraine benefits from an unprecedented level of robust oversight and transparency—an issue of great importance to Congress and the Administration—and will be conditioned on Ukraine making essential reforms. Conditions in the IMF program and those from EU funding have pushed Ukraine to take on ambitious reforms most notably in anticorruption and good governance practices. U.S. budget support is further conditioned on the implementation of reforms by the Government of Ukraine to improve transparency, strengthen governance of its public institutions, and fight corruption. We urge you to fully support the Administrationʼs request to provide $11.8 billion in direct budget support now to help Ukraine win the war, thereby advancing U.S. national security. A successful Ukraine will demonstrate the resolve of the United States https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy1885 3/4 11/7/2023 Secretaries Yellen, Austin, Blinken and Administrator Power Urge Congress to Back Direct Budget Support for Ukraine |… and its partners to defend the territorial sovereignty and fundamental freedoms of democratic countries against authoritarian aggression. It will also create new economic opportunities for the people of Ukraine and its partners who stand by them against Russiaʼs violent invasion. Sincerely, Janet Yellen, Secretary of the Treasury Lloyd J. Austin III, Secretary of Defense Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State Samantha Power, Administrator of United States Agency for International Development cc: The Honorable Kay Granger, Chair, House Committee on Appropriations The Honorable Rosa DeLauro, Ranking Member, House Committee on Appropriations The Honorable Patty Murray, Chair, Senate Committee on Appropriations The Honorable Susan Collins, Vice Chair, Senate Committee on Appropriations The Honorable Patrick McHenry, Chair, House Committee on Financial Services The Honorable Maxine Waters, Ranking Member, House Committee on Financial Services The Honorable Ben Cardin, Chair, Senate Committee on Foreign Relations The Honorable James E. Risch, Ranking Member, Senate Committee on Foreign Relations The Honorable Michael McCaul, Chair, House Committee on Foreign A airs The Honorable Gregory Meeks, Ranking Member, House Committee on Foreign A airs The Honorable Jack Reed, Chair, Senate Committee on Armed Services The Honorable Roger Wicker, Ranking Member, Senate Committee on Armed Services The Honorable Mike Rogers, Chair, House Committee on Armed Services The Honorable Adam Smith, Ranking Member, House Committee on Armed Services ### https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy1885 4/4
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