Congress spent more than $100 billion on aid to Ukraine in the first year of the invasion

By Casey Harper (The Center Square)

Friday marks the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which resulted in more than $100 billion in American taxpayer dollars earmarked to help the Eastern European country repel its aggressors.

The US Congress has committed more than $113 billion in support to Ukraine in just four major spending packages in 2022, the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget said, with more to come.

“Of the $113 billion approved in 2022, about three-fifths ($67 billion) is earmarked for defense needs and the remaining two-fifths ($46 billion) for general Ukrainian government assistance, financial support and non-defense concerns such as refugee assistance and resettlement,” the CRFB said in a statement.

Although this money has already been earmarked, the Congressional Budget Office estimates that the money will not be fully spent for years.

CBO estimates that three-quarters of the money will be spent by the end of fiscal year 2026.

The Biden administration has handed over not only cash but weapons directly to Ukraine. For example, the Department of Defense in January It announced nearly $3 billion worth of “security assistance” with $225 million from the State Department “for foreign military financing to contribute to the long-term capability and modernization of Ukraine’s military.”

To accomplish this, the DOD depleted part of its weapons stockpile for Ukraine.

“The Presidential Drawdown is the twenty-ninth drawdown tool from the DOD inventory for Ukraine authorized by the Biden administration beginning in August 2021,” the DOD said.

According to the DOD, here are some of the military assets handed over in the January package:

• 50 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles with 500 TOW anti-tank missiles and 250,000 rounds of 25mm ammunition;
• 100 M113 armored personnel carriers;
• 55 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles (MRAPs);
• 138 High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles (HMMWVs);
• 18 155mm self-propelled howitzers and 18 ammunition support vehicles;
• 70,000 155 mm artillery rounds;
• 500 precision-guided 155mm artillery rounds;
• 1,200 155mm rounds of Remote Anti-Armor Mine (RAAM) systems;
• 36 105mm towed howitzers and 95,000 105mm artillery rounds;
• 10,000 120 mm mortar rounds;
• additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS);
• RIM-7 missiles for air defense;
• 4,000 Zuni aircraft rockets;
• approximately 2,000 anti-armor rockets;
• Ammunition for sniper rifles, machine guns and grenade launchers and small arms;
• Claymore anti-personnel munitions;
• night vision devices and optics;
• Spare parts and other field equipment.

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But the US is not alone in this support. According to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, a German group tracking aid to Ukraine, European Union countries and groups have allocated nearly $60 billion dollars to Ukraine.

“Overall, humanitarian aid pledges remained relatively stable over the course of the year, while the share of economic and military support pledges grew,” the group said.

Some experts say the funds will help keep Russia at bay and send a message to China to discourage similar aggression.

“The United States has a clear strategic advantage in defeating Vladimir Putin’s barbaric war against Ukraine in terms of deterring future Russian aggression in Europe and deterring Chinese expansion by demonstrating Western resolve and lethality,” the Victoria Coates Heritage Foundation told Center Square.

Some Republicans are reluctant to support large aid packages for Ukraine, saying the money could be better spent at home and raising questions about how the money is being spent.

“We must stop funding the Ukraine war,” Rep. said Andy Biggs, R-Ariz. “The Biden administration is dragging us into a major war instead of seeking diplomatic solutions.”

Coates criticized Biden for “politicizing” the Ukraine fund.

“If President Biden continues to politicize support for Ukraine [and] By refusing to work closely with conservatives on Capitol Hill, he risks undermining a year of US support for Ukraine, allowing Putin to regroup for a potential future invasion, failing to seize an opportunity to deter China and repeating the experience of previous presidents. The American people could not effectively support the war,” he said. “All this will be a waste of $100 billion already committed to Ukraine.”

The anniversary of the attack comes after President Joe Biden made a surprise visit to Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

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As The Center Square previously reported, Biden held a joint press conference with Zelensky to “reaffirm our unwavering and unwavering commitment to Ukraine’s democracy, sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

“On that dark night a year ago the world was literally bracing for the fall of Kyiv,” Biden said at a news conference with the Ukrainian leader.

Aid to Ukraine does not appear to be drying up anytime soon.

“I am announcing another delivery of critical equipment, including artillery ammunition, anti-armor systems and air surveillance radars, to protect the Ukrainian people from aerial bombardment,” Biden said in a statement Monday morning. “And I share that later this week, we will announce additional sanctions against elites and companies that seek to circumvent or backfill the Russian war machine.”

Syndicated with permission from The Center Square.