New US House Speaker Johnson meets Biden

Washington, Oct 27 (IANS) US House Speaker Mike Johnson had a "productive meeting" with President Joe Biden requesting for splitting the $105 billion aid package for both Ukraine and Israel, the media reported. 

Johnson confirmed to reporters he had a productive meeting with President Biden on the aid package. Biden has requested the Congress to pass a combined $105 billion aid package to Ukraine and Israel -- $60 billion in military assistance for Ukraine and $14 billion for Israel for their respective wars with Russia the Hamas.

Johnson, a Louisiana lawmaker elevated to his role just one day ago, attended a White House briefing "on the need for (Biden's) national security supplemental request", a White House official said.

The US House of Representatives wants new military aid to Ukraine and Israel as separate measures, according to Johnson. 

"Our consensus among House Republicans is that we need to bifurcate those issues," Johnson said in an interview with Fox News.

Johnson said he had conveyed this message to White House officials following his earlier meeting with Biden in the day. The US presidential administration has requested $106 billion in emergency funding from Congress for Ukraine and Israel and southern border patrol forces, hoping that a package deal would help get approval for the full amount.

However, US media reports said that growing scepticism among House Republicans on how Ukraine was spending the aid was a divisive matter within the prty and it was a major talking point on who should lead the house as speaker on this issue that led to dismissal of three candidates ending in the election of Johnson as speaker. 

Johnson said that the US would not abandon Ukraine, emphasising that a Russian victory in Ukraine would embolden not only Russia, but also China in its stance on Taiwan. 

"We can't allow Vladimir Putin to prevail in Ukraine because I don't believe it would stop there," Johnson told Fox News.

"We can't allow Vladimir Putin to prevail in Ukraine because I don't believe he would stop there. He would probably encourage and empower China to perhaps make a move on Taiwan," the speaker said. "But we wanna know what the objective there is, what is the end game in Ukraine. The White House has not provided that."

However, Johnson said aid to Ukraine would require greater accountability for the money already spent. Some republicans have pointed ot corruption at the higher levels in Kiev. 

"Israel is a separate matter. But here's the thing that distinguishes House Republicans from the other team. We’re going to find pay-fors in the budget. We’re not just printing money to send it overseas. We’re going to fund the cuts elsewhere to do that," the speaker noted US media reports said. 

Johnson said the House Republicans would offer a $14.5 billion aid package for Israel, higher than the amount requested by the Biden administration. The budget request submitted by the White House to the US Congress on Friday includes about US$61.4 billion for Ukraine, of which US$46.1 billion is for defence spending and US$11.8 billion is for direct budget support. 

After his election, Mike Johnson said he supports providing aid to Ukraine, but "under certain conditions". There is consensus among Republicans in the House of Representatives that the funding requests for Ukraine and Israel should be considered separately. 

The move may reportedly impede US President Joe Biden's efforts to ensure US support for both allies amid the growing opposition to aid to Kyiv within the Republican Party. The White House combined military assistance for Ukraine and Israel in a $160 billion supplemental request to Congress on October 20.

Speaking in the first interview since his appointment, Johnson said the US would not abandon Ukraine but that the House's approval of further aid to Kyiv would require more accountability on money already spent, agency reports meanwhile from Kiev said.

One of former President Donald Trump's most loyal supporters in Congress, Johnson has been a critic of the delivery of aid to Ukraine. In May 2022, Johnson voted against a $40 billion aid package to Ukraine, claiming that his focus lies with solving domestic affordability challenges, reports said.

--IANS

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