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US diplomats have requested an urgent exemption for the Ukraine programs of 90-day freezing foreign assistance and a “interruption of work” issued by State Secretary Marco Rubio, according to documents in which they had an insight into the financial Times and people to introduce the issue.
Citing national security concerns, high diplomats at the Office for European and Eurasian State Department issues have asked Rubia to approve of complete exemption to exclude the work of the US International Development Agency (USAID) in Ukraine from a comprehensive Directive that immediately entered into force after issuance on Friday.
“At this point, we do not know if this request will be approved – in full or in part – but for now there are positive signals from Washington,” the USAIDs sent to the Ukraine staff in Ukraine, which was reviewed by FT, reads.
The USAID in Ukraine temporarily suspended the issuance of an “interruption of work” order while the request for exemption was considered, according to the email and officials of some of these partner organizations.
The agency also asked the staff to evaluate the programs “and find ways to support the Directive of State Secretary clearer to make now safer, stronger and more advanced.”
But by Saturday night in Kiev, some organizations began to receive orders to “interrupt”.
One such command that one organization shared with the FT dictates “to the contractor to immediately interrupt the works under the contract/order of the Task of the USAID/Ukraine” the organization received.
The order stated that the contractor “would not continue to work.
State Department, USAID and US Embassy in Kiev did not respond to commenting requests.
In an internal departa sent on Friday State Department and USAID, to which FT came, Rubio ordered to suspend all new foreign help payments. Conservation and awarding officers are instructed to “immediately issue orders to stop work. . . by the time determined by the secretary after the examination ”.
The examination, which will be expected to last up to 85 days, leaves the fate of hundreds of American contracts on foreign assistance – estimated at more than $ 70 billion in the fiscal year 2022. – In uncertainty.
Non -governmental organization officials in Ukraine, where the Russian comprehensive war is entering the fourth year next month, warned that, without the renunciation of new Secretary of State, President Donald Trump, programs such as support for schools and hospitals, as well as economic and economic and efforts to develop energy infrastructure in danger.
The program director of the NGO, which works in Kiev, said that the freezing of financing could be a “disaster” for their group and Ukraine.
There are some exceptions to Rubi’s command, including “approved exemptions” for military financing for Israel and Egypt, and foreign ambulance in food. But the deposion does not mention such an exemption for Ukraine, which relies on Washington for military assistance in the fight against Russia.
State Department and the US Embassy in Kiev did not respond to the demands of clarifying Rubi’s directive relating to the new military assistance to Ukraine.
However, the Ukrainian government official who is familiar with the issue has confirmed to FT that US military assistance does not fall under the freezing order. “Military assistance to Ukraine is intact,” the official said. “At least from now on, which is certainly not part of this 90-day freezing.”
Speaking at a press conference with Moldovan President Maiu Sanda in Kiev on Saturday, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that US weapons had not stopped coming to his country.
“I focused on military assistance; Not stopped, thank God, ”he said.
The US has provided $ 65.9 billion in military assistance to Kiev since Russia has launched its complete invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, according to the State Department statistics.
Trump was skeptical of US military assistance to Ukraine and ridiculed Zelensky as the “biggest seller in the world” because of his efforts to secure weapons and ammunition worth billions of dollars.
Trump said this week that he wanted to mediate in a “agreement” between Kiev and Moscow about the end of the war. He added that Zelensky was “enough” and threatened President Vladimir Putin with additional sanctions if he did not negotiate a truce.
