The US budget plan for the fiscal year 2024 presented by the administration of President Joe Biden includes special funding to support Ukraine and counter China, CNN reports.
63.1 billion is requested for the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development. According to a State Department fact sheet, the request includes $1.7 billion “that will help Ukraine win the war and lay the reform and recovery foundation for winning the peace and help other partners impacted by the war stabilize their economies and prepare for recovery.”
In addition, the new budget requests a $1.5 million increase to funding for the Global Engagement Centre, which would support programs countering propaganda and disinformation by Russia.
The Biden administration also requested $842 billion for the Defence Department, including $753 million for Ukraine to counter Russian influence and to help Kyiv with its security, energy and cybersecurity needs.
The $8.9 million is proposed “to support a priority U.S. strategic objective of increasing NATO common funding starting in 2023 as agreed to by the North Atlantic Council in December 2022.”
“Increased funding for the NATO civil budget will enable the organization to maintain its technological and operational edge in the evolving strategic and security environment that includes threats and challenges such as a more aggressive and assertive Russia and China, the need for strengthened cybersecurity, and threats posed by emerging and destructive technologies,” according to the budget justification document.
“With the war in Ukraine in its second year, the latest budget requests $6 billion to support Ukraine, NATO and other European partners,” CNN notes.