President Joe Biden submitted a request for a $106 billion package for military assistance to Ukraine and Israel on Friday.
The 80-year-old Democrat argued in an Oval Office speech that the huge sums involved – a total of $105.85 billion, including $61 billion in military aid for Ukraine and $14 billion for Israel – would secure U.S. interests for generations to come.
But Biden's request comes as the U.S. House of Representatives remains in chaos, with Republicans, who hold a narrow majority, in their worst meltdown for decades and unable to elect a speaker.
"The world is watching and the American people rightly expect their leaders to come together and deliver on these priorities," White House Office of Management and Budget director Shalanda Young said in a letter to Congress.
"I urge Congress to address them as part of a comprehensive, bipartisan agreement in the weeks ahead."
The package also includes $7 billion for countering China and strengthening allies in the Asia-Pacific region, and over $9 billion for humanitarian assistance for Gaza, Ukraine and Israel.
Most importantly, however, the huge funding ask is an attempt to bolster waning support for Ukraine by linking it with funding for Israel – which does have widespread bipartisan backing.
A growing number of Republicans – and U.S. voters – are opposed to adding to the $43.9 billion in security assistance that the United States has committed to Ukraine since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
An earlier request for aid for Ukraine was stalled when Republican House speaker Kevin McCarthy was ousted in a rebellion in September.
In the 17 days since, no Republican has been able enough votes to replace him. The latest to try, Donald Trump-ally Jim Jordan, has already failed twice.
Biden's speech on Thursday drew the link between the wars in Ukraine and Israel as part of a vision of the U.S.
The Kremlin on Friday denounced Biden's comments.
"We do not accept such a tone in relation to the Russian Federation, in relation to our president," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Peskov said such "rhetoric is hardly suitable for responsible leaders of states, and it can hardly be acceptable to us."
U.S. efforts to "contain" Russia would prove ineffective, he added.
Biden was due to welcome European Union leaders Charles Michel and Ursula von der Leyen to the White House later Friday, at a summit set to deliver a message of unity on conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine.
On Wednesday, Biden traveled to Israel in a "solidarity" tour amid indiscriminate Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, in response to an incursion by Hamas on Oct. 7.
The U.S. sees itself as Israel's protecting power. Every year it supports the country with billions of dollars in military aid.
The U.S. is also considered Ukraine's most important ally in Kyiv's fight against the Russian invasion.
