Pentagon looking into sending aid to Ukraine without Congress approval

The Pentagon is weighing whether to tap into the last remaining source of funding it has for military aid to support Ukraine’s war effort against Russia even without guarantees that those funds will be replenished by Congress.

That’s according to multiple defense officials who spoke with CNN, Ukrinform reports.

The Defense Department still has around $4 billion in presidential drawdown authority funds available for Ukraine, which allows the Pentagon to draw from its own stockpiles to send military equipment to Kyiv, the report reads.

The Pentagon had previously been reluctant to spend any of the remaining money without assurances it would be reimbursed by Congress through the administration’s $60 billion supplemental funding request.

No decisions have been made yet, officials emphasized. But the conversations about that option and other potential plan Bs have become increasingly urgent over the last several weeks as the situation on the battlefield in Ukraine has become more dire, the officials said.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, President Joe Biden met with Congress leaders, including to discuss  an urgent need to approve the new assistance package for Ukraine.