Kuleba on US State Department statement: Aid reduction not related to 2024
Commenting on an earlier statement by a U.S. official that Washington may not provide aid to Kyiv on the level of the 2022-2023 period, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba clarified on Jan. 5 that this was not in reference to U.S. support in 2024.
The decrease referred to a future situation when Ukraine can stand on its feet and counter Russian aggression, Kuleba told journalist Vadym Karpiak in an interview published on Instagram.
U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Jan. 4 that Washington is committed to supporting Ukraine for "as long as it takes," but that does not mean the same level of military funding as was provided in the past two years.
Such support should not be necessary as the U.S.'s ultimate goal is to help Ukraine become more self-reliant and help the country rebuild its industrial and military base, Miller added.
"This (statement) is not about support in the year 2024. The State Department said that once Ukraine is firmly on its feet and has enough weapons and resources to counter Russian aggression, the support amount may be reduced," Kuleba commented.
"It is not about a reduction in 2024 because, as the State Department's representative said himself, Ukraine still currently... needs support in the declared amount."
Miller's comments come as other U.S. officials have acknowledged that there is essentially no money left for Ukraine aid absent legislative action by Congress.
The U.S. has been mired in an ongoing debate about authorized new funding for Ukraine, which has become an increasingly partisan issue. Senate Republicans blocked a bill containing $61 billion in aid for Ukraine in early December largely for domestic political reasons.
Seeing foreign supplies becoming less certain, Ukraine has been increasingly focused on upping its domestic military-industrial capacity, which President Volodymyr Zelensky said had tripled in 2023.
Nate Ostiller
