U.S. senators press Pentagon over $600m aid

A bipartisan group of U.S. senators is pressing the Pentagon over delays in sending roughly $600 million in security assistance to Ukraine and three Baltic allies, opening a new fight with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over money Congress already approved. The lawmakers said in a May 22 letter that the Department of Defense had failed to deliver a spending plan by a May 15 deadline Hegseth had previously cited to Congress. The dispute centers on $400 million for Ukraine and another $200 million for defense programs in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The senators said further delays could undercut deterrence in eastern Europe. ### Which senators are pressing the Pentagon, and what are they asking for? Sens. Dick Durbin and Chuck Grassley led the letter to Hegseth, with Sens. Kevin Cramer, Thom Tillis, Michael Bennet and Catherine Cortez Masto also signing on, according to the Associated Press. The group asked the Pentagon to disburse the funding and provide the overdue plan for how the money will be spent. (usnews.com) The May 22 report said friction has grown between Congress and the Trump administration as lawmakers from both parties seek updates on the aid. In the letter, Durbin and Grassley said Ukraine “needs and deserves continued American support” after what they described as four years of Russian assault. (usnews.com) ### What money is being held up? The largest piece is $400 million in Ukraine assistance that senators say has been delayed for months. A further $200 million is earmarked for defense programs in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, bringing the total at issue to about $600 million. The money was allocated by Congress last year, the Associated Press said. (usnews.com) Congress reauthorized the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, or USAI, with $400 million annually for fiscal 2026 and 2027, according to a report citing the May 23 letter. That authority funds purchases and support for Kyiv rather than immediate transfers from existing U.S. stockpiles. ### Why are lawmakers so focused on timing instead of only the total amount? (usnews.com) The British House of Commons Library said the Trump administration suspended some military aid to Ukraine in early July 2025 while the Pentagon conducted a capability review. That aid was reported to include Patriot air-defense missiles and precision-guided weapons, including artillery rounds. The library said the decision surprised the White House and State Department, and that assistance resumed within days at Trump’s direction. (yahoo.com) That episode helps explain the senators’ concern about stop-start delivery. Lawmakers said in their letter that “any further delays” could hurt the United States’ ability to deter Russia, particularly as the Pentagon reportedly considers troop withdrawals from the region. ### Didn’t Hegseth already say the money had been released? (commonslibrary.parliament.uk) On April 29, Hegseth told lawmakers that $400 million in congressionally approved funding for Ukraine “was released as of yesterday,” according to NOTUS. The same report said Pentagon Comptroller Jay Hurst later told reporters the money had been under legal review and that the timeline for aid reaching Ukraine would depend on how Ukraine allocates the assistance. (usnews.com) The senators’ complaint is narrower than whether the funds were technically unlocked. Their letter says the Pentagon still did not provide the spending plan Hegseth said would be sent by May 15, leaving Congress without details on how the assistance will actually be disbursed. ### What happens next? (notus.org) The next immediate marker is the Pentagon’s response to the senators’ May 22 letter and whether it sends Congress the missing disbursement plan. Lawmakers are also likely to keep pressing the issue in hearings and appropriations work tied to fiscal 2027 defense funding, where Ukraine aid and Pentagon oversight are already active points of dispute. (usnews.com)