Washington Hamstrung in Formulating Viable Security Guarantees for Ukraine — WSJ

It is noted that without credible packages of support, Russia is unlikely to be deterred from continuing the special military operation

© Vladimir Gerdo/TASS

NEW YORK, August 29. /TASS/. The Biden administration may be forced to give weaker-than-hoped-for or overly vague pledges in providing security guarantees for Ukraine, as Washington may not be able to ensure the required levels of military spending earmarked for Kiev in future years, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.

According to the newspaper, Washington hopes to hold a second meeting with Kiev in the coming weeks, building on commitments made at a G7 meeting on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Vilnius. However, there is no consensus in the White House on how detailed the pledges should be, given that a successor administration, should President Joe Biden not be re-elected in 2024, could easily rescind any pledges made, the WSJ said, citing anonymous officials.

Under US law, binding international agreements must be approved by a two-thirds supermajority in the Senate, which can later be revoked by another supermajority vote. Although the president can sign any international agreement, a future White House administration could terminate it on a unilateral basis. European capitals are concerned that ex-President Donald Trump could overturn any pledges Biden may make should his comeback bid to retake the White House succeed in the November 2024 US presidential election, the newspaper writes.

As a result, the Biden administration is considering a memorandum of understanding that would not require congressional approval for the United States and Ukraine to agree on. However, without credible packages of support, Russia is unlikely to be deterred from continuing the special military operation, the WSJ maintains.

Should Trump or any other future Republican president reduce US aid to Ukraine after the 2024 US presidential election, European countries would not be able to pick up the slack, according to the newspaper. Hence, concern is growing among European leaders, who are looking for ways to ensure allied defense industries can manufacture the promised military assistance to Ukraine.