HUDSON INSTITUTE
TEN MYTHS ABOUT US AID TO UKRAINE
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POLICY MEMO
Ten Myths about
US Aid to Ukraine
LUKE COFFEY
Senior Fellow, Hudson Institute
October 2022
Ukraine is in a national struggle that will determine its
geopolitical future: the country will either be a rm member
of the Euro-Atlantic community or become a Russian colony.
The outcome of this struggle will have long-term implications
for America’s global interests, the future of the transatlantic
community, and the notion of national sovereignty in the
twenty-rst century.
Russia is a top geopolitical adversary for the United States. For
Americans who believe in strong and secure national borders,
the primacy of national sovereignty, and the right to self-
defense, support for Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression
is natural. Considering America’s other geopolitical concerns,
such as a rising China and a healthy economic relationship
with Europe that benets the American worker, US support for
Ukraine is an imperative.
Ukrainians are not asking for, nor do they want, US troops
to help them ght Russia. All they ask for is the equipment,
weapons, munitions, and nancial resources required to give
them a ghting chance. Providing Ukraine what it needs to
ght Russia effectively will not be cheap.
So far this year, the US Congress has voted on three different
supplementals for Ukraine: $13.6 billion in March, $40.1 billion
in May, and $12.4 billion in September. The cost that American
taxpayers incur to help Ukraine is money well spent and will
pale in comparison to the cost of deterring a victorious Russia
or an emboldened China on the global stage.
As the war continues, Congress will likely pass additional
spending. It is in America’s interest that Ukraine wins the war,
and that Russia is decisively defeated. Even though polling
overwhelmingly shows broad and bipartisan support for Ukraine,
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some in Congress are against further US aid for Ukraine.
Here are the top ten myths and misconceptions about US aid
for Ukraine and why they are wrong:
