Congress Set to Give the Pentagon $6.5 Billion for Ukraine War

$3 billion will pay for troops deployments to Eastern Europe, $3.5 billion will restock weapons that have been sent or will be sent to Ukraine

Congress is set to give the Pentagon $6.5 billion to send more weapons to Ukraine and pay for troop deployments in Eastern Europe as part of a $13.6 billion emergency spending package to respond to the Ukraine crisis.

Of the $6.5 billion, $3 billion will go towards paying for troops deployments to Eastern Europe, and $3.5 billion is meant to pay to restock weapons the US has sent or is planning to send to Ukraine.

The $13.6 billion package also includes funding for the State Department and the US Agency for International Development (USAID). The $13.6 billion is being rolled into a massive $1.5 trillion omnibus bill, which the House passed on Wednesday night. The bill will appropriate $782 billion for military spending, not including the emergency Ukraine money.

Since Russia started its assault on Ukraine, the US has been working closely with its NATO allies to flood weapons into the country, including Stinger anti-aircraft missiles. Over the past few months, the US has sent more troops to countries in Eastern Europe that border Ukraine and Russia.

The US has floated the idea of helping its ally Poland send old Russian-made fighter jets to Ukraine, although the Pentagon has backed down on the idea, saying it’s too “high risk.” But the Ukraine emergency bill would give the Biden administration the authority to provide loans to NATO allies who give equipment, including fighter jets, to Ukraine.

Author: Dave DeCamp

Dave DeCamp is the news editor of Antiwar.com, follow him on Twitter @decampdave.