US 2027 Budget Excludes Funding for USAI Program for Ukraine

The draft US budget for 2027 does not include separate funding for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) program, which provides security assistance to Ukraine. This was revealed during hearings in the US Senate Armed Services Committee.

Senator Angus King raised the issue of continued support for Ukraine and the 400 million dollars provided by last year's bipartisan congressional act. These funds arrived in March, but their distribution is still ongoing. US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth stated that Washington expects greater financial participation from European countries, emphasizing that «Europe can step up, Europe can fund this… European countries should pay for this».

Acting Chief Financial Officer of the US Department of War, Jules Gerst, confirmed the absence of USAI funding in this budget. The USAI program allowed the Pentagon to order military equipment for the Armed Forces of Ukraine from defense companies.