US President Joe Biden dramatically underscored US support for Ukraine this week with a trip to the war-torn country, but at home public support for arms shipments to Ukraine is waning as the conflict escalates. into its second year with no end in sight.
American support for providing military aid to Ukraine has dropped to 58%, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll of more than 4,000 Americans, conducted Feb. 6-13, down from 73. % who said they support gun transfers in an April 2022 poll.
Signs of fading enthusiasm come at a difficult time in US politics that could constrain Biden’s ability to fully deliver on his promise of unwavering US support as long as Russian troops are on Ukrainian soil.
Republicans are at loggerheads with the White House over raising the debt ceiling – which limits how much money the US can borrow. They are demanding drastic spending cuts to control the deficit at a time when the US is pumping billions of dollars in military and other aid to Ukraine. Several Republican lawmakers allied with former President Donald Trump have called for restrictions on assistance.
Aid could become a talking point in the 2024 presidential campaign, which is already underway. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who is expected to seek the Republican presidential nomination, this week criticized what he called Biden’s “blank check” policy toward Ukraine.
For now, Republican leaders in Congress, who strongly oppose Biden on most policy issues, support assistance for Ukraine’s defense, including urging Washington to send more powerful weapons more quickly. House Foreign Affairs Committee Republican Chairman Michael McCaul said on a visit to Kiev on Tuesday that Washington’s efforts were shifting toward sending long-range missiles and fighter jets to Ukraine.
But the party is divided over Ukraine. Right-wing Republicans in the US House of Representatives this month introduced a resolution on what would be Ukraine fatigue that proposes cutting aid, but it lacks enough support to jeopardize aid in the short term.
Only 11 Republican lawmakers out of 222 in the House signed the resolution. Not many, but Rachel Rizzo, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Europe Center in Washington, warned it could be a mistake to ignore them.
“The influence that this small group has on the party remains to be seen, but I think it’s something of concern for all of us,” Rizzo said.
Congress has approved every new tranche of funding the Biden administration has requested since the start of the war, with military assistance and aid worth $113 billion pledged to Ukraine and allied countries so far.