April 28,2022: President Joe Biden has asked Congress on Thursday for $33 billion to support Ukraine – a dramatic escalation of U.S. funding for the war against Russia – as well as new legal tools to siphon assets from Russian oligarchs.
According to Reuters, the vast funding request includes over $20 billion for weapons, ammunition and other military assistance, as well as $8.5 billion in direct economic assistance to the government and $3 billion in humanitarian and food security aid.
“We need this bill to support Ukraine in its fight for freedom,” Biden said at the White House. “The cost of this fight – it’s not cheap – but caving to aggression is going to be more costly.”
Biden is also seeking the ability to seize more money from Russian oligarchs to pay for the war effort.
His proposal would have lawmakers hand his administration new capabilities, letting U.S. officials seize more oligarchs’ assets, give the cash from those seizures to Ukraine and further criminalise sanctions dodging, the White House said.
