WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� A bipartisan group of senators is pushing back on delays by the Department of Defense in sending to Ukraine and other allies in eastern Europe, dispatching a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday that calls for the funding to be disbursed.
Friction has grown between Congress and the Trump administration in recent weeks as lawmakers from both sides of the aisle push for updates on what has happened with $400 million in Ukraine aid and $200 million more for defense programs in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The money was allocated by Congress last year. Even Republican lawmakers have aired their frustration as with Ukraine and other European allies.
鈥淯kraine has persistently and bravely repelled a four-year Russian onslaught, but its military needs and deserves continued American support,鈥� said Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin and Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley in the joint letter.
Republican Sens. Kevin Cramer and Thom Tillis and Democratic Sens. Michael Bennet and Catherine Cortez Masto also signed onto the letter.
During a over three weeks ago, Hegseth had told lawmakers that the Ukraine funding had been 鈥渞eleased鈥� and a spending plan would soon be sent to lawmakers. But the senators say the Pentagon failed to meet the promised May 15 deadline for that plan.
鈥淎ny further delays 鈥� particularly as the Department reportedly plans troubling U.S. troops withdrawals from the region 鈥� risks our ability to adequately deter Russia,鈥� the senators said.
The letter was the latest sign of with the Trump administration after a week in which the president endorsed the primary challenger to Texas Sen. John Cornyn, angering many.
In a back-and-forth with the president on social media Friday, Tillis blamed Trump’s advisors for a list of policies he says are hurting the GOP politically, including, 鈥淔iring our very best generals and not holding Putin accountable for his systematic kidnapping, rape, torture, and murder of Ukrainian civilians.鈥�
Several Republicans have also taken issue with Hegseth’s Gen. Randy George last month. George had pushed to reconfigure the Army’s battlefield strategy to incorporate drone warfare and had worked with Ukraine’s military to learn from its experience.
In the House, a Democratic-backed proposal to impose sweeping sanctions on Russia and send $1 billion in military aid to Ukraine has as well. While that aid package is unlikely to become law, it鈥檚 helping fuel a renewed push among lawmakers for supporting Ukraine鈥檚 war effort.
The $400 million in security aid for Ukraine is relatively small compared to the that Congress initially approved in the months and years immediately following Russia’s invasion, but for lawmakers, the provision has also taken on significance as a sign of their continued support.
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