WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden requested $33 billion in support for Ukraine from Congress on Thursday, marking a significant increase in US money for the war against Russia, as well as new legal instruments to syphon assets from Russian oligarchs.
Over $20 billion in guns, ammunition, and other military aid, as well as $8.5 billion in direct economic support to the government and $3 billion in humanitarian and food security help, are included in the massive financing request.
At the White House, Biden stated, “We need this bill to support Ukraine in its battle for freedom.” “This fight isn’t inexpensive, but giving in to violence will be even more expensive.”
Biden also wants to be able to confiscate more money from Russian oligarchs in order to fund the war effort.
According to the White House, his proposal would give Congress new powers to his administration, allowing them to confiscate more oligarchs’ assets, distribute the money from those seizures to Ukraine, and make sanctions evading more criminal.
Allowing the Justice Department to use the tough US racketeering legislation, the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, which was originally used against the mafia, to develop cases against persons who dodge penalties is one of the measures.
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Biden also wants to extend the statute of limitations on money laundering crimes from five to ten years, giving prosecutors more time to assemble cases. According to a summary of the ideas, he would also make it illegal to possess money intentionally obtained from unethical deals with Russia.
The penalties are part of the US’s efforts to isolate and punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine on February 24, as well as to assist Kyiv in recovering from a war that has left towns in ruins and prompted more than 5 million people to flee to other countries.
The current proposal is for the whole amount that US authorities expect to require until September, the fiscal year’s end.
Since Russia initiated a “special military operation” to demilitarise and eliminate Nazis in Ukraine, US military aid to Ukraine has surpassed $3 billion. That is a phoney pretext, according to Kyiv and its Western supporters.
According to the Biden administration, the United States and its European allies have frozen $30 billion in assets owned by affluent individuals with ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, including yachts, helicopters, real estate, and art.
Members of Congress from both parties have backed initiatives to bolster Ukraine’s economy. The House of Representatives easily approved a mostly symbolic bill encouraging Biden to sell off Russia’s frozen assets on Wednesday.
However, after hearing the extra plan, Republican congressional officials acknowledged that while they generally favoured aid to Ukraine, combining it with the new funds Biden seeks for the COVID-19 response could make it tough to pass.
