(WatchDogReport.org) – US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned the House of Representatives during a private briefing on December 5 that the United States will “very likely” send American troops to Eastern Europe if they don’t approve more aid to Ukraine.
During an interview with The Messenger following the briefing from Austin and other Biden administration officials, House Foreign Affairs Chairman and Texas Republican Michael McCaul said the defense secretary delivered a dire warning. He explained that Austin told lawmakers that Russia would take control of Georgia, Moldova, and the Baltics if the Eurasian country ended up succeeding in Ukraine.
McCaul added that Austin pointed out how the United States needs to “avoid” sending troops to these nations, but claimed the most efficient way to prevent it is by sending aid to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The conservative leader added that the defense secretary repeatedly said he believes that the aid will allow Ukrainian armed forces to “Resist.”
As reported by the media outlet, Austin’s warnings “did little” to convince many Republican lawmakers who don’t want to send more aid to Kyiv without more transparency and accountability. House Speaker and Louisiana Republican Mike Johnson told The Messenger it remains unclear whether lawmakers feel satisfied with the answers Austin provided.
The White House has asked the House of Representatives to approve a $106 billion package to Ukraine, which would be in addition to the $113 billion that has been allocated to help Kyiv in its war against the Russian troops so far. California Republican Representative John Duarte told The Messenger that Austin’s briefing was “staged” and “prescriptive.”
He said he felt that Austin and the other Biden administration officials failed to change the minds of those who are still skeptical about sending more aid to Ukraine. When asked to elaborate, Duarte told the media outlet that their arguments weren’t “insightful” or “impressive.” He added that what the secretary of defense and the rest of the officials said were “the same stuff” Americans have been watching on the news.
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