Yellen tells EU that Biden is committed to Ukraine budget funding

By David Lawder

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen reassured top European Union officials on Wednesday that the Biden administration was "firmly committed" to its request for Congress to approve $11.8 billion in budget aid for Ukraine, saying failure to do so would hand a victory to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"Congress must act quickly to provide support to Ukraine, including through direct budget assistance," Yellen said at the start of a bilateral meeting with EU executive vice presidents Margrethe Vestager and Valdis Dombrovskis in Washington.

"Failure to act would hand a victory to President Putin and have unthinkable consequences not only for Ukraine, but also for our collective security," Yellen said, adding: "Simply put, we cannot allow Ukraine to run out of money before it runs out of ammunition."

The funds, along with around $50 billion in military aid to help Ukraine battle Russia's nearly two-year-old invasion, are bogged down in negotiations amid demands by Republicans for sweeping changes to U.S. border security policies.

Yellen said the funds were an investment in the national security of the United States and Europe and in the "rules-based international system that benefits all of us."

Vestager said that it was "absolutely essential" for the United States and EU to maintain a strong partnership to support Ukraine and not give Putin any expectations of "changing our attention" on Ukraine.

She said the support from the United States, the EU and its member states, which has totaled over $54 billion since 2022, was starting to bear fruit on fighting corruption in Ukraine.

(Reporting by David Lawder; Writing by Katharine Jackson; Editing by Caitlin Webber and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)