Biden seeks $13B more in Ukraine defense aid as US opposition grows

WASHINGTON — President Biden will ask Congress to approve another $13 billion in defense aid for Ukraine in its war against Russia — despite increasing pushback over the current $113 billion in congressionally approved aid.

The latest ask, which will be paired with $12 billion for domestic disaster relief, comes ahead of an anticipated budget showdown in late September — with conservatives expected to demand cuts in exchange for avoiding a partial government shutdown.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif) has signaled he will call separate votes on a dozen government-funding bills — rather than put them all into a must-pass omnibus bill, as has been done in the past.

McCarthy said in June that a Senate push to boost Ukraine aid was “not going anywhere,” though the House speaker has supported past aid to Kyiv to fight off Russia’s nearly 18-month-old invasion.

It was not immediately clear whether Biden’s supplemental requests, first reported Thursday by The Associated Press, will be considered separately or rolled into a larger bill.

The billions in US support for Ukraine have become increasingly controversial and the supplemental request will be the first major legislative test this year — after hulking packages sailed through Congress in 2022, allowing for gradual drawdowns by the administration.

A CNN poll released last week found that 55% of Americans oppose Congress approving additional aid for Ukraine — including 71% of Republicans, 55% of independents and 38% of Democrats.

The poll found that women (59%) are most likely to oppose additional congressional funding for Ukraine, with 58% of non-white Americans also against more support.

However, other polls indicate nuanced or fluctuating public stances.

The Pew Research Center found in June that 28% of Americans felt the US was giving “too much” to Ukraine, 31% felt the US contribution was “about right” and 16% thought there was “not enough” given.

Reuters/Ipsos recently recorded sharp swings in American sentiments.

A poll in late June — days after mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin’s failed coup in Russia — found that 65% of Americans backed US arms donations to Kyiv, up sharply from 46% in May.

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