Absence of US funding ‘leaves Ukraine’s cities vulnerable to Russian attacks’

Ukrainian cities will be vulnerable to Russian missile attacks this winter without approval for more US military assistance from Congress in the coming weeks, White House officials have warned.

Joe Biden’s request for a $60 billion (£48.8 billion) package for Ukraine was removed from a spending resolution in the House of Representatives on Monday, risking weeks more delays before the next tranche of funding can be released.

The White House faces opposition to arming Ukraine from House Republicans, who argue that the US has already spent too much money on Kyiv’s latest counteroffensive, without clear results.

Senior administration officials told the Telegraph that without another package to fund the war effort, Ukrainian cities would be vulnerable to Russian strikes in the coming months, when it is likely to be too cold for major military manoeuvres on the front lines.

Smaller security packages

“Ukraine is about to face another difficult winter where we’re likely to see more Russian aerial assaults against Ukrainian critical infrastructure in an effort to try to deprive the Ukrainian people of heat and electricity,” one administration official said.

“We are likely to see some type of impact over the coming months, and in the past few weeks, we’ve had to begin giving Ukraine smaller security assistance packages than we had previously.”

Much of the US assistance to Ukraine has been focussed on building up the country’s air defences, to repel Russian missile attacks and aerial bombardment of its cities.

The US’s latest tranche of gifted weapons, which was smaller than previous packages, provided ammunition for National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS) given to Ukraine in November last year.

The administration has also given Kyiv the Avenger and Patriot air defence systems, plus handheld Stinger surface-to-air missiles.

Air defence ammunition could run dry

Following a meeting on Sunday between the US State Department and Andriy Yermak, the head of the office of Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, the White House is concerned that the costly replacement ammunition for the air defence systems could run dry if it is forced to ration supplies to Ukraine any further.

While the Pentagon has contingency plans for Ukraine’s “most critical and important needs”, the packages will diminish in the coming months, one official said.

Jake Sullivan, the White House’s national security adviser, said on Monday that the US’s ability to protect Ukraine gets “harder and harder” with “each week that passes”.

Neither Mr Sullivan nor administration officials said it would give a deadline for a Congressional vote, but stressed that the impact on the Ukrainian front lines would be felt soon.

Last month, Mr Biden requested more than $100 billion (£80 billion) in federal funding for a range of international crises, including wars in Ukraine and Israel.

The “one and done” plan, first reported by The Telegraph, was designed to fund the war in Ukraine beyond the next presidential election in November 2024.

Republican lawmakers, led by the new House Speaker Mike Johnson, have said they will only consider more funding for Ukraine if it is paired with greater spending on southern border control measures within the US.

Although Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader in the Senate, had previously said he was supportive of the Ukraine war effort, he now looks more likely to row in behind his House colleagues.

A vote on Monday evening in the House saw the chamber approve a stopgap spending bill to avoid a government shutdown later this month, but without the international military aid Mr Biden had requested.

Another difficult winter

Last winter, Russia launched a targeted bombing campaign in Ukraine, destroying about half of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and causing widespread blackouts in freezing temperatures.

Although Ukraine has since improved its air defences, only Kyiv has a comprehensive anti-missile shield and energy infrastructure across the country remains seriously damaged from last winter’s attacks.

Ukraine has stockpiled 16 billion cubic metres of gas to be used over the coming months and opened 54 new gas production wells, reducing its reliance on foreign imports.

But its electricity generation plants will remain vulnerable to Russian attacks without the delivery of more air defence systems and missiles.

Mr Zelensky said on Sunday that the “sky shield” was “more powerful compared to last year” but “does not yet fully protect the entire territory”.