White House details £86bn funding request for Israel, Ukraine and more

President Joe Biden speaks from the Oval Office (Jonathan Ernst/Pool via AP)

The White House has released a sweeping set of proposals to bolster Israel and Ukraine in the midst of two wars as well as invest more in domestic defence manufacturing, humanitarian assistance and managing the influx of migrants at the Mexico border.

The total cost of the supplemental funding request was pegged at just over 105 billion dollars (£86 billion). President Joe Biden hopes Congress will move urgently on the legislation, and made the case for deepening US support for its allies during a rare Oval Office address on Thursday night.

The Democratic president’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told reporters on Friday that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Hamas’s attack on Israel represent a “global inflection point”.

Sums in Biden package

• 61.4 billion dollars (£50.6 billion) for Ukraine
• 14.3 billion dollars (£11.8 billion) for Israel

“This budget request is critical to advancing America’s national security and ensuring the safety of the American people,” Mr Sullivan said.

However, next steps are in doubt while the House of Representatives remains in chaos with the Republican majority unable to choose a new speaker. Representative Jim Jordan, a close ally of Donald Trump, is still pushing to run the chamber, an effort that has led to frayed nerves and bruised relations on Capitol Hill.

Even if Republicans can sort out their leadership drama, Mr Biden will face resistance to his plans. He is hopeful that combining several different issues, from border security to countering China’s influence, will foster a political coalition that can move the legislation forward.

But there is equal potential for the entire package to get bogged down in policy debates, especially when it comes to immigration, a historically contentious topic.

Shalanda Young, director of the Office of Management and Budget, suggested it would be hypocritical for Republicans to oppose Mr Biden’s proposal after complaining about lax border management.

Shalanda Young (Susan Walsh/AP)

“We will not be lectured by those who refuse to act,” she said. “As we’ve said repeatedly, Congress needs to take action to provide sufficient resources for the border.”

Although there was a lull in migrant arrivals to the US after the start of new asylum restrictions in May, illegal crossings topped a daily average of more than 8,000 last month.

The White House wants roughly 14 billion dollars (£11 billion) for measures including boosting the number of border agents, installing new inspection machines to detect fentanyl and increasing staffing to process asylum cases.

The biggest line item in the supplemental funding request is 61.4 billion dollars (£50.6 billion) to support Ukraine. Some of that money will go to replenishing Pentagon stockpiles of weapons that have already been provided.

“The world is closely watching what Congress does next,” Mr Sullivan said.

Israel would receive 14.3 billion dollars (£11.8 billion) in assistance under the proposal. The majority would help with air and missile defence systems.