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Updated June 10, 2024
Russia's War on Ukraine: U.S. Policy and the Role of Congress
On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a full-scale
invasion of Ukraine, a country Russia first invaded in 2014
and has partially occupied for a decade. The war has led to
hundreds of thousands of killed or wounded, according to
U.S. and other estimates, and the displacement of more than
9 million people as of May 2024, according to international
humanitarian organizations. In 2024, Russia has conducted
multiple offensives, seizing some additional Ukrainian
towns and settlements. Ukraine continues to wage defensive
operations, bolstered by military assistance mainly from the
United States and Europe.
The General Assembly ... reaffirms its commitment
to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial
integrity of Ukraine [and] declares that the unlawful
actions of the Russian Federation ... have no validity
under international law.
U.N. General Assembly Resolution ES-1 1/4, Oct. 12, 2022
Leaders of the United States, NATO, the European Union
(EU), and other partners have called the war against
Ukraine unprovoked and unjustified. The United States,
in coordination with the EU, NATO, and others, has
provided substantial assistance to Ukraine, imposed a series
of increasingly severe sanctions on Russia and its enablers,
and sought to promote accountability for Russian war
crimes. To deter further aggression, the United States and
NATO have increased their military presence in Central and
Eastern Europe. In the United States, policymakers and
observers continue to consider the impact of assistance to
Ukraine, the effectiveness of sanctions, the course of the
conflict, and the implications of a protracted war. Congress
may consider additional actions and oversight with respect
to these and related issues.
Ass stance to Ukraine
Since FY2022, Congress has enacted five supplemental
appropriations measures providing assistance to Ukraine
and other countries affected by the war, as well as related
funding. Of a total $174.2 billion in emergency
appropriations made available by these acts, including
$60.8 billion in FY2024 supplemental appropriations (P.L.
118-50, Division B), Congress has appropriated about
$127.6 billion for assistance to Ukraine and other countries
affected by the war. Of this amount, about $77.4 billion has
been for security assistance (including to replace U.S.
defense articles provided to Ukraine), $40.3 billion for
economic assistance, and $9.8 billion for humanitarian
assistance. Congress appropriated another $44.6 billion to
support U.S. military operations in Europe and other U.S.
government responses to the war, including for sanctions
enforcement and refugee and entrant assistance (about $2.1
billion has been appropriated for other global assistance
purposes).
For Ukraine specifically, the Biden Administration to date
has committed more than $51 billion in security assistance,
$22.9 billion in direct financial assistance (with another
$7.85 billion anticipated for FY2024), and $2.3 billion in
humanitarian assistance since February 2022. The
Administration also has provided, according to CRS
estimates, around $5 billion for Ukraine's energy,
governance, and agriculture sectors, among others, and to
support the needs of Ukrainian refugees in other countries.
As of April 2024, European countries and EU institutions
had made available more than $100 billion in assistance for
Ukraine since February 2022, including more than $45
billion in security assistance. In February 2024, EU leaders
approved an additional $54 billion in assistance to Ukraine,
to be disbursed through 2027. The EU has allocated an
additional $18 billion to provide for the needs of Ukrainian
refugees in Europe; individual EU members also have
provided refugee assistance. Japan, Canada, other countries,
and international organizations also have provided
assistance to Ukraine.
Sanctions
The United States, the EU, and others also have responded
to Russia's war on Ukraine with sanctions. Prior to 2022,
the United States had imposed sanctions on Russia in
response to Moscow's 2014 invasion of Ukraine and other
malign activities. Since February 2022, the United States
has imposed sanctions on more than 4,400 individuals and
entities, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, other
Russian elites, Russia's legislature, defense and technology
firms, state-owned companies, and facilitators of sanctions
evasion. U.S. sanctions restrict Russia's central bank from
drawing on its U.S.-dollar-denominated reserves, prohibit
most major Russian banks from conducting transactions in
U.S. dollars or with U.S. persons, and bar new U.S.
investment in Russia. The United States has expanded
export controls affecting Russia's access to sensitive or
desired U.S.-origin goods and technology; restricted the
import of energy, gold, certain diamonds and metals, and
certain other goods from Russia; banned the export of
luxury goods and certain services to Russia; raised tariffs
on many imports from Russia; and prohibited Russian use
of U.S. airspace and ports.
In addition to executive branch actions, Congress has
suspended normal trade relations with Russia (P.L. 117-
110), prohibited the import of Russian oil and other energy
products (P.L. 117-109), established sanctions on foreign
persons who engage in gold transactions with Russia (P.L.
117-263, §5590), and imposed restrictions on the import of
Russian uranium (P.L. 118-62).
The United States and the EU have closely cooperated in
imposing sanctions on Russia for its ongoing aggression](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.crs/govepoc0001&div=1&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)