From Military.com:
“Lend-Lease Is Back as
Congress Gives Biden New Tool for Quick Ukraine Weapons Shipments”
(U.S. Marine Corps M777 towed 155
mm howitzers prior to being loaded onto a U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III
aircraft at March Air Reserve Base, California, April 22, 2022.)
Congress has revived a World War
II-era tool to quickly ship weapons to Ukraine as President Joe Biden urgently
requests billions in new funding, warning existing weapons funding has nearly
run out. On Thursday, the House overwhelmingly approved the Ukraine Democracy
Defense Lend-Lease Act, which removes bureaucratic hurdles for the United
States to quickly send weapons to Ukraine and other Eastern European countries,
with the promise of repayment later. The bill, which cleared the Senate in a voice
vote earlier this month, now awaits Biden's signature. The last time the United
States had a lend-lease program was during World War II.
"Bureaucracy, we all know,
is an enemy in a crisis, so streamlining processes and improving speed and
agility is extremely, extremely important," Rep. Victoria Spartz, R-Ind.,
the only Ukrainian-American in Congress, said on the House floor Thursday. The
bill passed 417-10. All 10 "no" votes came from Republicans: Reps.
Andy Biggs, Arizona; Paul Gosar, Arizona; Scott Perry, Pennsylvania; Matt
Gaetz, Florida; Tom Massie, Kentucky; Ralph Norman, South Carolina; Tom
Tiffany, Wisconsin; Marjorie Taylor Greene, Georgia; Dan Bishop, North
Carolina; and Warren Davidson, Ohio. The House vote came the same day Biden
sent a request to Congress for $33 billion in funding for Ukraine, including
$16.4 billion for the Pentagon. Congress previously approved $13.6 billion in
Ukraine aid in March, including $3 billion to replenish U.S. weapons stockpiles
that are being sent to Ukraine. In the weeks since, the administration has
committed nearly all of that $3 billion to various weapons packages, pledging
and shipping Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, Javelin anti-tank missiles,
Switchblade kamikaze drones, Howitzer artillery systems, armored vehicles and
more.
After the Ukrainians defied
expectations and staved off a Russian takeover of Kyiv, western officials are
warning the next phase of the war, in which Russia is concentrating on the
Donbas region in Ukraine's east, could be particularly fierce and that
Ukrainians need heavier weaponry faster to build on their momentum in the war.
Biden's latest funding request
asks for $5 billion to replace U.S. weapons stockpiles being sent to Ukraine. He
also requested $6 billion for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, the
program Congress created in 2016 to buy weapons for and help train the
Ukrainian military. That would be 20 times the $300 million Congress approved
for the program in 2022 as part of the regular government funding process. The
weapons funding could go toward "even more artillery, armored vehicles,
anti-armor systems, anti-air capabilities that have been used so effectively
thus far on the battlefield by the Ukrainian warriors," Biden said during
a White House address announcing the request Thursday. The latest request also
seeks to create what's called a critical munitions acquisition fund for the
U.S. military to ensure the Pentagon doesn't run low on certain types of
ammunition when backing countries such as Ukraine with security aid, Defense
Secretary Lloyd Austin said during a press conference Thursday.
The new funding "will allow
the department to purchase and establish a strategic reserve of vital
munitions, like anti-aircraft and anti-tank munitions, to surge for this crisis
and quite frankly crises to come," Austin said. The request also includes
$2.6 billion to fund the continued deployment of U.S. troops on NATO's eastern
flank. "We'd urge Congress to approve our request without delay,"
Austin said. The Ukraine funding has broad bipartisan support, but its fate in
Congress could become bogged down in partisan politics. Congressional Democrats
have indicated they are planning on moving the Ukraine funding alongside
COVID-19 funding, which has become entangled in an immigration fight. While
Congress debates the funds, lawmakers say the lend-lease authorities approved
Thursday will provide a critical mechanism for the administration to
immediately get Ukraine the equipment it needs to win the war.
The World War II "lend-lease
program would help propel the Allies to a victory that preserved the promise of
democracy for generations to come," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.,
said speaking to the chamber. "Our task today remains the same as it did
with the original lend-lease. Make no mistake, Russia invaded with the stated
goal of ending liberty and self-governance in Ukraine, yet with unimaginable
courage and determination the Ukrainian people are putting their lives on the
line for democracy, not only for their own nation, but for democracy writ large
for the world."
^ Lend Lease was first created in
the 1930s-1940s to help good (UK) conquer evil (Germany) and it did that in
1945. Now Lend Lease is once again needed in 2022 to help good (Ukraine)
conquer evil (Russia.) If we aren’t going to actively fight to help Ukraine the
least we can do is make sure the Ukrainians have all the weapons they need to defend
themselves. ^
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.