Statement on Supplemental Aid for Ukraine

Belarus Freedom Forum urges the U.S. Congress to pass the supplemental funding for Ukraine.

The ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine is a broad and imminent threat to global security and the safety and prosperity of Americans. If this invasion is allowed to succeed, it will undoubtedly invite more acts of aggression by Russia, China, Iran, and other authoritarian regimes against the U.S. and its allies and partners around the world. An increase in armed conflicts will increase food insecurity, create more refugees, raise fuel prices, and disrupt supply chains. Providing aid to Ukraine now is the most cost-effective way to mitigate this risk.

Ukraine exceeded the world’s expectations and held back and even pushed back the army that has more troops, more equipment and operates with utter disregard for the lives of civilians and of its own personnel. Ukrainians and volunteers from Belarus and other countries are paying with their lives to, in the words of Yale professor Timothy Snyder, fulfill the entire mission of NATO by themselves. An expenditure that constitutes only a fraction of the U.S. defense budget and comes primarily in the form of dated military equipment and ammunition is a small price to pay for the impact Ukraine’s resistance is making on Russia’s ability to wage war.

Every day of delay benefits the adversaries of the U.S. and increases risks to this country’s security and prosperity. Congress must act now and pass the supplemental funding for Ukraine immediately.