I think the heart of the matter that I haven’t seen discussed yet is: Who’s going to pay for it? The current administration is cutting expenses across the board. There’s a lot of talk about the deficit and defense spending. I don’t see much appetite in the US to keep sending blank checks to Ukraine. Hence, the minerals deal: this was to recoup costs.
Of course, it would be great if defending democracy was free. However, with politicians already talking about cutting Medicaid spending, it was only a matter of time until defense spending came under scrutiny
Sending money to Ukraine saves US money. The equipment that Russia is losing means the US does not need to maintain as much military as before and fpr the cost of 90B US can permanently save maybe 30% of its mil budget going forward, especially is Russia clearly looses. One more year of support to Ikrain would destroy most of gerund Russian equipment and set it back for years.
Of course, it would be great if defending democracy was free. However, with politicians already talking about cutting Medicaid spending, it was only a matter of time until defense spending came under scrutiny