US House Speaker Mike Johnson refused to promise that congressmen would ultimately unblock aid to Ukraine, and said that the current status quo on this issue is unacceptable.
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“We’ll see,” the Republican said when asked in an interview with CNN whether the Ukrainian funding would ultimately be approved by the House.
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The Republican opposition in Congress links the approval of the White House’s $61 billion request for Kyiv with the implementation of large-scale immigration reform and is discussing its parameters with fellow Democrats and administration officials.
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Johnson made it clear that, in addition, he expects the administration to outline a strategy for action in Ukraine, define final goals and ensure control over the funds allocated. The speaker is not satisfied with the status quo, where all this is absent.
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“I understand the importance of … funding Ukraine, I understand the threat that Vladimir Putin poses to the world order, what he can do if he is not stopped. But we have an obligation to be reliable custodians of taxpayer dollars. And I say that the status quo is unacceptable here “I think a large and growing number of Americans understand that we need to take these issues seriously,” he said.
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“We cannot spend billions of dollars without articulating a clear strategy. I told the President again at the meeting today (Wednesday) … that it is necessary to articulate what the strategy is, what the end goal is, what result we are trying to get, how to ensure accountability of precious American dollars taxpayers,” Johnson added.
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He took part in a meeting with US President Joe Biden, who gathered congressional leaders in an attempt to encourage them to allocate funds to Ukraine. Johnson said that he did not receive answers to the questions raised: at the meeting, everyone spoke in turn, after which time ran out.
