Barely a week after Ukraine President Zelensky was in Washington appealing for more US military aid and funds, the compromise struck in Congress dropped new funding.

(Photo: cnn.com)

The future of the US military aid for Ukraine hangs in the balance after a last-gasp deal to avoid a government shutdown. This is despite President Biden’s attempts to reassure Kyiv that it will get US military aid that they need to fight Russia.

According to Malay Mail, it was barely a week when Ukraine President Zelensky appealed for more funds and more US military aid when Congress, on Sunday, dropped new funding for Ukraine amid opposition from hardline Republicans. Biden and his Democratic party says the US has a duty to help Ukraine stand up against Russian President Putin’s brutal invasion, warning that failure to do so could embolden autocrats in the future.

However, the issue has become so politicized in Washington that the fate of the US military aid in now in jeopardy, just as Kyiv tries to make progress in its counteroffensive before winter will set in. Biden urged Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to stop the games and said he fully expects a secure passage of a separate bill for Ukraine funding very soon.

Ukraine played down the blow saying that it was actively working with its American partners to ensure new US military aid. Josep Borrell, top diplomat for the European Union – a major US partner in delivering US military aid in Ukraine- said that the bloc was surprised by the last minute deal and they regret the US decision, deeply and thoroughly.

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Analyst Brett Bruen said that it is damaging that the wider signal – not only for Republicans but also some democrats – were willing to sacrifice Ukraine for politics.

Ukraine is nervously eyeing the possibility of a return to the White House by Republican former President Trump who has previously praised President Putin in the past. Top House Democrats said that they expect McCarthy to bring a separate bill for the US military aid for Ukraine to vote for next week, though it was unclear if it would be the $24 billion President Biden originally sought.

Ukraine’s fight has become such a political football just over a year from the 2024 US Presidential election, with questions mounting over the aid approved by Congress that totals $100 billion so far, including $43 billion in US military aid.

Even if McCarthy does agree on the US military aid for Ukraine, there is a wider problem: war fatigue. Skepticism is spreading from republicans to more moderate lawmakers who say they won’t write Ukraine a blank check. Moreover, a worry for Biden and Kyiv, inflation hit American voters appear to have similar concerns about Ukraine.

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