Both the American people and policymakers are unsure about the War in Ukraine. As the conflict reaches its second year, policymakers and citizens alike are now divided about financial support to Kiev. However, many military specialists think support to Ukraine needs to continue in order for Ukraine to defeat Russia and protect its sovereignty.
Thomas G. Mahnken, a senior research professor with the Phillip Merrill Center for Strategic Studies at Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) said that there should be an effort by Americans to look at the overall aims of the conflict that will make Russia start to negotiate with Ukraine. “I think that we should think about what the capabilities are that A. Ukraine needs to prevail on the battlefield over Russia and B. what are the capabilities that Ukraine will need in the future to protect its sovereignty, “
Assistance to protect the population has begun to dwindle as Russia makes new attempts to overwhelm Ukraine’s armed forces. According to the Department of Defense, it is estimated that the United States only has $7 billion in weapons stocks remaining that can be sent to Ukraine. Since the war started, there had been $46 billion dollars earmarked by both the United States Congress and the Biden Administration to send military assistance to fight Russia. In total, the United States government has provided more than $76 billion in financial assistance to Ukraine, which is a combination of military assistance and humanitarian support to the Ukrainian government.
According to Phillip, a concerned citizen, violence is a last resort, there should be continued support for Ukraine. Specifically, he feels that since Ukraine does not have the means to defend itself, the United States should aid the country. “Russia would probably completely invade Ukraine,”.
In an article written by Voices of America (VOA), President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his address to the U.S. Congress that Ukraine will lose the war without American assistance.
Similarly, David Barno, a retired Lieutenant General of the United States Army says that the United States should make more of an effort to even the playing field for Ukraine in its battle with Russia. He believes that if the United States does not try to assist Ukraine in its fight against Russia, then other state actors will be emboldened to attack their neighbors across the world.
“The United States enables Ukraine to have the ability to fight Russia and it would be difficult for the Ukrainian people to continue fighting Russia if American assistance disappeared,” Barno said.
However, despite the fact Russia has suffered major losses in Ukraine, according to Global Firepower, Russia continues to retain its rank as the second most powerful military in the world behind the United States of America and above the People’s Republic of China.
An unnamed civilian believes that due to the fact that the Ukraine War is a complex conflict simply staying out of the conflict or going all in to fight Russia is too easy, there should also be an effort to achieve a more diplomatic conclusion to the war. In America, there is still a high degree of support for the war while a diplomatic solution is being pursued. Similarly, according to the Washington Post, Americans still support assistance in the War in Ukraine by 63 percent compared to last November where American support for Ukrainian assistance was at 65 percent.
“It would be a disaster to withdraw aid from Ukraine, there would likely be a collapse in resistance against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,” said an unnamed individual.
But there continues to be a growing opposition for assistance to Ukraine in the U.S. Congress and among the general public. Though in mid-September there was a general willingness to support President Biden’s $24 billion proposal to provide Ukraine with more military and economic assistance, the newly appointed Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has stated that the House of Representatives will first work to assist Israel and later consider measures to support Ukraine. Though further assistance to Ukraine is not out of sight, the likelihood that the House of Representatives will pass comprehensive aid packages for the Ukrainian government are less likely to happen as support for the war continues to decline.
Furthermore, the United States’ public debt in the next decade is predicted to surpass $50 trillion and will be larger than the combined economies of China, Germany, Japan and India. According to Market Insider, the U.S. Debt is predicted to grow by $20 trillion because of fiscal excess. Currently, the three principal owners of American public debt are Japan at more than $1 trillion, China at more than $800 billion and the United Kingdom at more than $600 billion.
By David Smith
Sources
Kyiv: Ousting of US House speaker darkens outlook for Ukraine aid as funds dry up | CNN Politics Funding a Decisive Ukraine Victory Is an Investment, Not a Cost (csis.org) Pentagon program cobbles together air defense weapons for Ukraine (militarytimes.com) https://www.usip.org/publications/2023/08/why-we-should-back-ukraines-diplomatic-long-game New Poll Signals Americans Growing Tired of Ukraine Support Without Diplomacy (businessinsider.com) Political divide emerges on U.S. aid to Ukraine as Zelenskyy heads to Washington - CBS News Ukraine War Casualties Near Half a Million, U.S. Officials Say - The New York Times (nytimes.com) New data shows how many Russian soldiers have died in Ukraine | AP News https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/10/04/ukraine-poll-republican-support/ Continued Support to Ukraine, Replenishing Military Stocks: Priorities for Department > U.S. Department of Defense > Defense Department News