Brussels — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen urged European countries to spend more to support Ukraine on Tuesday as attacks on Russia’s critical infrastructure showed little sign of diminishing.
The United States and Europe have been working closely together for about three months from the president by imposing drastic sanctions on Russia. Vladimir Putin, Ordered an invasion. However, the need to support Ukraine’s economy and help rebuild Ukraine after the end of the war has not been well coordinated.
Congress has already approved $ 13.6 billion emergency spending package for Ukraine And is expected to approve another $ 40 billion worth of aid.. The European Union and the multilateral financial institutions are also providing large amounts of aid, but Yellen said he had to do more.
“I sincerely ask all partners to join us to increase financial support for Ukraine,” Yellen said in a speech at the Brussels Economic Forum, according to a prepared statement. .. “Our joint efforts are important to help ensure that Ukrainian democracy wins Putin’s invasion.”
The Treasury is in the middle of a week-long trip to Europe, Stop in Warsaw, Brussels and Bonn, Germany, will meet her counterparts in a group of seven Finance Ministers Summits. Assistance to Ukraine is expected to be a central topic of the conference.
Mr Yellen said Ukraine’s financial needs are imminent and there is a shortage of funds to pay soldiers, pensioners and employees to keep the government running.
“The obvious thing is that the bilateral and multilateral assistance announced so far is not enough to meet the needs of Ukraine in the short term,” she said.
I still don’t know if I will listen to her call. European countries are facing their own economic tensions, such as rapid inflation and soaring energy costs, and a major challenge awaits Russia’s departure from energy.
Yellen said it would help the United States break Europe’s dependence on Russia’s energy by increasing US exports of liquefied natural gas, in part. She acknowledged that some climate goals to reduce emissions could be set back by the need to rely on coal and fossil fuels, but the current plight is “clean and renewable energy.” It should remind us of the need to “double our efforts on.”
In his speech, Yellen said Russia’s decision to cut gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria should be a lesson that Western countries should not exchange national security for cheaper resources. .. Such circumstances leave them vulnerable to countries that can use their abundant natural resources to disrupt markets.
Russia-Ukraine War: Significant Progress
She raised China as a concern in that regard for the supply of rare earth minerals used in the manufacture of airplanes, automobiles and high-tech batteries.
“China has gained market share as a result of certain technology products and is seeking a dominant position in the manufacture and use of semiconductors,” Yellen said. “And China has adopted various unfair trade practices in its efforts to achieve this position.”
Still, Yellen made it clear that he was not seeking a reversal of protectionism or globalization. Instead, when it comes to international trade, she said countries shouldn’t put all their eggs in one basket.
“My point is to suggest that we need to consider ways to maintain free trade and at the same time mitigate some of these risks,” she said.
