The U.S. House of Representatives has approved the 2025 defense budget, but it does not include lend-lease provisions for Ukraine.

The Ukrainian Ambassador to the U.S., Oksana Markarova, stated this.

According to her, the Ukrainian embassy has been actively advocating for the extension of the Lend-Lease program; however, the bill approved by the House of Representatives did not include such a provision.

At the same time, this bill contains three points related to Ukraine:

• Article 1303, which continues the ban on the use of any funds for actions that could lead to the recognition of Russia's sovereignty over the occupied regions of Ukraine;
• Article 1534, which directs the U.S. Secretary of Defense to develop the possibility of creating a center of excellence to support the development and enhancement of weapon systems based on artificial intelligence. Among the functions of such a center is to facilitate cooperation between the Pentagon and foreign partners, including Ukraine;
• Article 6411, which requires the Director of National Intelligence, the Secretary of State, and the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury to submit a report to the Senate and House committees on the financing of acts of international terrorism by Russia.

Markarova also noted that funding for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) for the fiscal year 2025 was included in last year's defense budget at a level of $300 million.

Lend-Lease for Ukraine

U.S. President Joe Biden signed the Lend-Lease Act for Ukraine on May 9, 2022. This document allows for a significant acceleration of the supply of weapons, transport, food, and other assistance on a rental or free basis from the U.S. to Ukraine. Thanks to this program, the White House does not have to wait for Congress to allocate special funds for this purpose.

The Lend-Lease program was last used during World War II when the U.S. supplied allies with ammunition, equipment, and other necessary materials and food to fight against Nazi Germany.