Although a stopgap funding bill to prevent a U.S. government shutdown was passed on Sept. 30 without any provisions for aid for Ukraine, President's Office Head Andriy Yermak said on Oct 1 that it should not be construed as a change in U.S. support for Ukraine.
In comments on Telegram, Yermak stated that Ukrainian leadership regularly meets with bipartisan representatives about the continuation of U.S. aid. Despite the omission of aid provisions in the latest spending bill, he expressed confidence that it did not reflect a larger shift away from U.S. support for Ukraine.
Oleh Nikolenko, Foreign Ministry spokesman, said that although the shutdown may cause disruptions to certain programs, it would not fundamentally alter the overall state of aid for Ukraine.
Furthermore, he wrote on Facebook that, "support for Ukraine remains unwaveringly strong both in the U.S. administration and in both parties and houses of the U.S. Congress, and most importantly, among the American people."
The funding bill was passed just hours ahead of the deadline at midnight on Sept. 30, and was a temporary measure to keep the U.S. government running for another 45 days.
Following the passage of the bill, top U.S. Senate leaders issued a rare bipartisan statement affirming their commitment to Ukraine.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), and representatives of the appropriations committees said they expect the Senate will work "to ensure the U.S. government continues to provide critical and sustained security and economic support for Ukraine."
Dinara Khalilova
(Updated: )
