Ukraine has not yet received any weapons from the US under the Lend-Lease Act of 2022 as Washington is still supplying military aid to Ukraine under other programs, Ukraine Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman Oleh Nikolenko told Hromadske.
The lend-lease mechanism enables the US to lend or lease military materiel to Ukraine in fiscal years 2022 and 2023:
“The advantage of this tool is the speed of decision-making by the US Administration under a simplified procedure without excessive bureaucracy and the need for voting on each package of aid to Ukraine in the US Congress. Its disadvantage is that the volumes of deliveries of American weapons within the lend-lease framework directly depends on the financial capabilities of Ukraine,” says Nikolenko.
Nikolenko says that at this stage of the war, the United States decides to provide military assistance to Ukraine at the expense of its own federal budget under three programs:
- Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, USAI
- Foreign Military Financing, FMF
- Replenishment of US weapons stocks
Unlike the lend-lease, these programs don’t require Ukraine’s reimbursement for weapons, military equipment, and ammunition in the future.
“Any loan or lease of defense articles to the Government of Ukraine under paragraph (1) shall be subject to all applicable laws concerning the return of and reimbursement and repayment for defense articles loan or leased to foreign governments,” the Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act of 2022 reads.
The US House of Representatives adopted the lend-lease act in late April:
The Ukraine Lend-Lease Act passed by a vote of 417-10 now goes to President Joe Biden to sign into law. pic.twitter.com/ErFBqVEa91
— Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) April 28, 2022
US President Joe Biden signed the act on 9 May 2022:
Biden has signed the Lend-Lease Act of 2022 for🇺🇦as the Russian celebration of "Victory Day" in Moscow ends in an hour. https://t.co/uJ7BkPjeZ4
— Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) May 9, 2022
