The White House is considering joining Ukraine’s funding to the request for urgent assistance for Israel, the WP reports.
The publication writes, “This will increase the likelihood that Congress will approve aid to Kyiv, despite growing opposition from Republicans in the House of Representatives. Linking the two aid requests could prompt some Republicans to vote for the combined package because they would not want to block military aid to Israel,” WP sources said.
Israel is planning a ground operation in the Gaza Strip, so Israel made several specific requests to Washington, including restocking Iron Dome interceptor missiles, small-diameter bombs, various machine gun ammunition, and increased intelligence-sharing cooperation.
However, combining requests for military assistance could increase the strain on US stockpiles as they support two countries at once. In addition, Israel’s demand for the supply of 155-millimeter high-explosive shells “may irritate supporters of Ukraine since this ammunition is in short supply and is badly needed by Kyiv”.