Biden administration to send $186M to help Ukrainian refugees

The State Department announced plans Tuesday to provide $186 million in humanitarian assistance to support Ukrainian refugees displaced due to the ongoing Russian attack on Ukraine.  

“This will provide further support for humanitarian organizations responding to the crisis and complement the generosity of the neighboring countries that are welcoming and supporting refugees,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.  

“We call for an immediate end to Russia’s continuing war against Ukraine and for Russia to facilitate unhindered humanitarian access in Ukraine and safe passage for those who seek to leave the cities where they are trapped,” he said. “Humanitarian aid deliveries must be allowed to continue without interference, and humanitarian workers must have safe passage to deliver aid and assistance to those in need.” 

The United Nations estimated Tuesday that 3 million people have been displaced by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which began about three weeks ago.  

The Biden administration has sent $550 million in assistance to Ukraine in the past two weeks, according to White House press secretary Jen Psaki. That assistance is expected to ramp up further after President Biden signed into law a sweeping government funding bill that includes $13.6 billion in Ukraine-related assistance on Tuesday.  

Blinken said the funds would support efforts to get food, safe drinking water, shelter, and emergency healthcare to those in need.

Biden administration officials have said the U.S. is willing to accept Ukrainian refugees, though they expect most to want to remain in Europe. Refugees have poured into countries neighboring Ukraine, like Poland, as they try to escape the war.  

A senior administration official told reporters on a call that a U.S. Agency for International Development disaster response team has been on the ground in the region since the early days of the war to assess humanitarian needs.  

“The situation on the ground in Ukraine is rapidly getting worse,” the official said, adding that Russian shelling is making it difficult for responders to get aid to those in need.  

The Biden administration announced earlier this month that it would grant temporary protected status to Ukrainians already in the U.S. and there are reports the administration is also considering expediting the resettlement of Ukrainian refugees that have family already living in the U.S.

A second senior administration official told reporters the State Department “is continuing to work to explore all possible options to support those who may want to resettle to the United States and meet the qualifications of our resettlement program.”