U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE

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S. HRG. 118–493 

A REVIEW OF THE NATIONAL SECURITY 

SUPPLEMENTAL REQUEST 

HEARING 

BEFORE THE

COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS 

UNITED STATES SENATE 

ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS 

FIRST SESSION 

SPECIAL HEARING 

OCTOBER 31, 2023—WASHINGTON, DC 

Printed for the use of the Committee on Appropriations 

( 

Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.govinfo.gov 
(II) 

COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS 

PATTY MURRAY, Washington, Chair 

RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois 

JACK REED, Rhode Island 

JON TESTER, Montana 

JEANNE SHAHEEN, New Hampshire 

JEFF MERKLEY, Oregon 

CHRISTOPHER A. COONS, Delaware 

BRIAN SCHATZ, Hawaii 

TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin 

CHRISTOPHER MURPHY, Connecticut 

JOE MANCHIN, III, West Virginia 

CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, Maryland 

MARTIN HEINRICH, New Mexico 

GARY PETERS, Michigan 

KYRSTEN SINEMA, Arizona 

SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine, Vice Chair 

MITCH McCONNELL, Kentucky 

LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska 

LINDSEY GRAHAM, South Carolina 

JERRY MORAN, Kansas 

JOHN HOEVEN, North Dakota 

JOHN BOOZMAN, Arkansas 

SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO, West Virginia 

JOHN KENNEDY, Louisiana 

CINDY HYDE-SMITH, Mississippi 

BILL HAGERTY, Tennessee 

KATIE BRITT, Alabama 

MARCO RUBIO, Florida 

DEB FISCHER, Nebraska 

EVAN D. SCHATZ, Staff Director 

ELIZABETH MCDONNELL, Minority Staff Director 
(III) 

C O N T E N T S 

Page 

Opening Statement of Chair Patty Murray ........................................................... 1 

Statement of Vice Chair Susan M. Collins ............................................................ 4 

Statement of Hon. Antony J. Blinken, Secretary, U.S. Department of State ..... 6 

Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 10 

Statement of Hon. Lloyd J. Austin III, Secretary, U.S. Department of Defense ...................................................................................................................... 11 

Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 13 

Additional Committee Questions ............................................................................ 76 

Questions Submitted to Hon. Antony J. Blinken: 

Questions Submitted by: 

Senator Jeanne Shaheen ................................................................... 76 

Senator Jeff Merkely .......................................................................... 76 

Senator Joe Manchin ......................................................................... 77 

Senator Gary Peters ........................................................................... 78 

Vice Chair Susan M. Collins ............................................................. 79 

Senator Lisa Murkowski ................................................................... 79 

Senator John Boozman ...................................................................... 80 

Senator Shelley Moore Capito ........................................................... 81 

Senator Bill Hagerty .......................................................................... 82 

Questions Submitted to Hon. Lloyd J. Austin III: 

Questions Submitted by Senator Joe Manchin ....................................... 83 

Conclusion of Hearing ............................................................................................. 85 

(1) 

A REVIEW OF THE NATIONAL SECURITY 

SUPPLEMENTAL REQUEST 

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2023 

U.S. SENATE, 

COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS, 

Washington, DC. 

The committee met at 9:37 a.m. in room SD–106, Dirksen Senate 

Office Building, Hon. Patty Murray (chair) presiding. 

Present: Senators Murray, Durbin, Reed, Tester, Shaheen, 

Merkley, Coons, Schatz, Baldwin, Murphy, Manchin, Van Hollen, 

Heinrich, Peters, Sinema, Collins, Murkowski, Graham, Moran, 

Hoeven, Boozman, Capito, Kennedy, Hyde-Smith, Hagerty, Britt, 

Rubio, and Fischer. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIR PATTY MURRAY

Chair MURRAY. Good morning. This hearing of the Senate Appropriations Committee will please come to order. We are here today 

to discuss the national security components of the President’s supplemental funding request. 

We are glad to have Secretary Austin and Secretary Blinken 

with us to talk about the challenges we are seeing around the 

world and the urgency of providing the necessary resources to meet 

these challenges, support our allies, and make the world and our 

country safer. 

At our first full committee hearing earlier this year on 

outcompeting China, both Secretaries made a strong case for why 

passing our full-year appropriations bills with robust investments 

in America and avoiding perpetual CRs (continuing resolutions) 

and devastating cuts, is so crucial to keeping our Nation competitive on the world stage. As the two of you return to this committee, 

I think every member on this dais understands and takes to heart 

many of the messages you left with us at the last hearing. 

These are unprecedented and difficult times, and American leadership and support will be critical as we face the many threats and 

challenges we will discuss today. That is why Congress must come 

together in a bipartisan fashion to act decisively and purposely. 

This is not a time to punt American leadership or punt on funding 

agencies critical to these efforts and to American families. If we let 

politics and division drive us away from this mission, I worry about 

where we will stand for years to come. So I hope this committee 

can continue to lead the way with thoughtful, swift, bipartisan action that keeps your message here today in mind. Thank you both 

for joining us again. 
2 

We are at a precarious moment across the globe. Ukraine is continuing its courageous resistance against Putin’s bloody invasion, 

and Israel is reeling from a horrific terrorist attack by Hamas, a 

vicious attack that none of us will ever forget. Now, it is often the 

innocent that suffer most in war. So of course, there are also urgent humanitarian needs, including aid for the Ukrainian people 

and the countries caring for those displaced by Putin’s war, and aid 

for Palestinian civilians in Gaza. It is also a humanitarian imperative that Hamas release the hostages it took during its violent attack. 

And of course, Putin’s invasion has also severely disrupted food 

supply chains around the world, leaving a serious crisis of global 

hunger in its wake. In the Indo-Pacific, our friends and partners 

face growing threats and aggression, particularly from the Chinese 

Government. In short, the world is on edge, and how the U.S. 

wields its leadership will be a critical factor in determining what 

happens next. Now is a time for serious, sober discussion, not partisanship or political show. 

This hearing is a crucial opportunity for us to make sure we are 

taking a full view of this moment, meeting immediate requirements 

while planning for the long term, and providing the resources necessary to make the world safer for America and its allies. If we are 

going to get this right, we have to understand how these conflicts 

are developing today and what our strategy is for the future. We 

have to appreciate the nuances that differentiate each of these 

challenges, as well as the ways in which they are all interconnected. We have to see the big picture without losing sight of 

the human reality on the ground, the fact that in the middle of 

every conflict are civilians, residents displaced from their homes, 

hostages torn from their families, people facing obstacles getting 

basic medical services, and kids and families who desperately need 

food and water. And we have to be able to recognize the complexity 

of these issues while holding fast to the simple, actionable truths 

that can guide our work. 

For me, that means America must stand strong by our allies. 

Dictators cannot be allowed to invade sovereign democracies, terrorism cannot be tolerated, and we cannot ignore the humanity and 

the cries for help from civilians who are caught in the middle of 

conflict and crossfire, who we must protect. 

It is a tall order, but the Biden administration’s national security 

supplemental request offers us a useful blueprint. And Vice Chair 

Collins and I are working, right now, to craft strong bipartisan legislation that meets the national security priorities that the President laid out. That means a package that provides support to the 

Ukrainians who are at a crucial point in their fight to protect their 

sovereignty and the end of the butchery of Vladimir Putin’s brutal 

invasion, one that makes clear to other countries looking to copy 

Putin’s aggression, that they will fail, and one that replenishes 

DOD’s stockpiles as well and bolsters our domestic manufacturing 

that is crucial to ensure we have secure supply chains when it 

comes to our Nation’s defense, and that after we send Ukraine 

weapons, we are replacing our stocks with modern American-made 

arms. 
3 

And let us be clear, huge super majorities in the House and Senate favor more support for Ukraine, so getting this funding across 

the finish line should not be controversial. Meeting this moment 

also means a package that ensures we stand with Israel as it 

works to protect its people in the wake of the horrific Hamas attack, and deter additional terrorist threats, and one that helps us 

prevent further escalation of violence in the region and address humanitarian needs. 

It means a package that strengthens our presence and supports 

our allies in the Indo-Pacific, and helps us keep pace as the Chinese Government works aggressively to expand its footprint in the 

region. And of course, it also means a package that continues our 

long-standing and all-important tradition of the U.S. leading the 

global humanitarian response, and delivering vital humanitarian 

aid to save lives in places that are being torn apart by conflict, 

whether they are in Ukraine, or Israel, or Gaza, we cannot lose 

sight of the needs of civilians whose lives have been upended by 

war and violence around them. Making sure people have food, 

water, and medical care is not just the right and moral thing to do, 

it also promotes long-term stability and security, combating hopelessness that can spiral into new threats. 

Let me also say this, as someone who voted against the Iraq 

War, I have been heartened to see the President urge our allies in 

Israel not to fall subject to so many of the same mistakes we saw 

following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It is an important message for 

the President and our country to deliver as a friend of Israel, to 

stay clear-eyed and strategic in the pursuit of justice. Every country has an obligation to protect innocent life and abide by international law, especially during times of conflict. 

I am glad that the Biden administration is sending that message, 

and I strongly support their robust efforts to ensure further access 

to humanitarian relief for the civilians of Gaza. 

Finally, make no mistake, we need to address all of these priorities as part of one package because the reality is these issues are 

all connected, and they are all urgent. The Chinese Government is 

watching how we respond to Putin’s aggression in Ukraine. Putin 

is hoping the Hamas attack will give him an opening and distract 

the world from aiding Ukraine against his brutal invasion, and all 

of our adversaries are watching closely to see whether we have the 

vision to recognize how these crises are related, and the resolve to 

come together and respond forcefully to them. 

Our adversaries are cheering for dysfunction. So let us instead 

show them unity. Let us show them the strength of democracy by 

passing a robust, bipartisan national security package. 

And before I turn it over to Vice Chair Collins, let me just say, 

while we are focused on the global challenges at this hearing, we 

should also address the needs here at home: the childcare crisis, relief for our communities who have been struck by disaster, the 

fentanyl crisis, the needs at our southern border, and more. I am 

continuing to discuss a separate hearing to address those issues 

with my colleagues. I know that it is critical to many of us here, 

and next week we will have an opportunity to discuss these issues 

with Secretary Mayorkas and Secretary Becerra at a hearing in 

front of this committee on November 7th. 
4 

Bottom line, we face a number of urgent national security issues 

and challenges here at home. President Biden has submitted requests for much-needed supplemental funding to address these priorities. I urge my colleagues on both sides to work with me on all 

of these urgent issues. And if we can pass our domestic priorities 

right alongside our national security priorities, we absolutely 

should. After all, we are the United States of America. We can 

stand with our allies around the world and tackle the challenges 

facing our families here at home at the same time. 

Now, I am glad we are holding this hearing today to discuss the 

vital national security request the President has submitted to Congress, and I look forward to a thoughtful discussion about what is 

needed to fight and deter aggression from authoritarian leaders, 

tackle terrorist threats, and protect civilians, and about what is at 

stake for America’s own security and future if we fail to stand with 

our friends across the globe and lead. 

Thank you. And with that, I will turn it over to Vice Chair Collins. 

STATEMENT OF VICE CHAIR SUSAN M. COLLINS

Vice Chair COLLINS. Thank you, Chair Murray, for holding this 

important hearing. Let me begin by expressing my appreciation to 

Secretary Blinken and Secretary Austin for joining us today to discuss the President’s national security supplemental funding request. I had hoped that Secretary Mayorkas also would be here, 

but he is testifying this morning before another Senate committee. 

I very much appreciate that the Chair has scheduled an opportunity next week for Secretary Mayorkas to come before us and describe what is needed in the supplemental to provide effective border security to stem the flood of illegal migrants, and fentanyl 

crossing into the United States. Through the end of fiscal year, as 

of September 30th, there were a record 2.5 million encounters at 

our Southwest border. This real threat to our homeland must also 

be addressed. 

The collective threats that the United States faces from an aggressive Iran and its proxies and imperialist Russia and a hegemonic China are also challenges that require our attention and cooperation from our allies. Adversaries in the Middle East are 

launching attacks not only against our ally, Israel, but also against 

American troops in Syria and Iraq. In Ukraine, the determined patriots, backed by the United States, the European Union, Japan, 

Australia, and others continue to battle Putin’s brutal and 

unprovoked invasion. In Asia, China’s dangerous game of brinkmanship is targeting our aircraft flying in the region, rattling sabers at Taiwan, and physically challenging claims of the Philippines and Vietnam in the South China Sea. 

Some have argued for decoupling funding to address these 

threats and focusing only on the Iranian-backed terrorists who 

massacred so many Israelis on October 7th. We must recognize 

that our national security interests are being aggressively challenged by all these authoritarian actors in an effort to dismantle 

the international order that we established following World War II. 

Iran has been Russia’s accomplice in Ukraine through the export 

of weapons and drones that terrorize Ukrainian civilians. Just last 
5 

week, Russia hosted Hamas and Iranian leadership where Hamas 

praised Russia’s criticism of Israeli’s actions to defend itself following the recent terrorist attacks. China refuses to condemn either Russia’s second invasion of Ukraine or Hamas’ attacks, despite both having committed war crimes targeting civilians and 

both having stolen children from their families. 

If we fail to thwart these efforts, there will be dire consequences 

that will jeopardize our national security. The metric by which I 

will scrutinize the funding proposed by the administration’s request is simple: Does it make America more secure or not? 

Let me offer a few reflections. When I was in Israel with Senator 

Graham, Senator Cardin, and several other Senators last week, we 

met with families whose loved ones, including very young children, 

are being held hostage by Hamas. 

During the October 7th terrorist attacks, parents were murdered 

in front of their children. The actions of Hamas are nothing less 

than evil. And we must stand by our friend, Israel, the only true 

democracy in the Middle East. 

Like Israel, Ukraine was the victim of an unprovoked attacked 

by a repeat violent offender. The United States, albeit slower than 

many of us would have liked, stepped in with assistance for 

Ukraine to help repel Russian’s battlefield advances. Let us review 

what has happened since we have helped Ukraine in its defense 

against Russia’s second invasion. No U.S. soldiers have lost their 

fighting in Ukraine; our adversary, Russia, is weaker; NATO 

(North Atlantic Treaty Organization) is stronger than ever; Finland 

has joined the alliance; and I expect that Sweden will do the same 

soon. Each of these outcomes is in America’s interest. 

Finally, the supplemental request includes more than $30 billion 

to replenish our military’s weapons stockpiles and invest in and 

strengthen the U.S. defense industrial base in many States. The requested funding will refill the stockpiles and increase the production capacity of key munitions in greatest demand. None of this 

funding goes overseas or to another country. It makes America 

stronger by modernizing our arsenal of democracy, right here in 

our country, and improving the readiness of the U.S. military to 

deter any adversary seeking to harm the United States. 

Secretary Blinken and Secretary Austin, we look forward to hearing your specific justifications. Before we turn to your opening 

statements, let me reiterate that Chair Murray and I want to enact 

all 12 appropriations bills, including the State Foreign Ops bill and 

the Defense Appropriations. As former Secretary of Defense, Bob 

Gates, once told me: The most important action Congress can take 

to bolster our national security is to pass full-year appropriations 

bills to avoid the harm to military readiness that comes from shortterm funding, patches, or sequestration. Secretary Austin, I hope 

that you will comment on that in your opening remarks. 

Thank you, Madam Chair. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you, Vice Chair Collins. And before I introduce our witnesses and move to testimony, I want to take a moment to welcome someone else today, our newest member of the 

committee. Senator Sinema is someone who truly knows how to 

work with Members on both sides of the aisle. I am sure she will 

be a strong voice for our constituents. Welcome to our committee. 
6 

Vice Chair COLLINS. Madam Chair, if I may echo your welcome 

to Senator Sinema. We have worked very closely on many bills, and 

I know she is going to be a great addition to our committee. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. Now, back to the business at hand, 

I am very pleased to welcome Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, 

and Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin. Thank you both for taking 

the time today to be with us and to answer our questions. 

We will now start with opening remarks. And Secretary Blinken, 

I will begin with you. 

STATEMENT OF HON. ANTONY J. BLINKEN, SECRETARY, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you very much, Chair Murray, Vice 

Chair Collins, distinguished Members of the Appropriations Committee, thank you for this opportunity to testify before you today. 

[Anti-war protest interruption.] 

Chair MURRAY. I do recognize that people feel very passionately, 

but I ask that we have order in this hearing room, and respect our 

speakers. And we will move forward with the hearing, and allow 

the people here, and the American people to hear from their witnesses. 

Senator (sic) Blinken. 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you, Chair. Two-and-a-half years ago, 

our adversaries assessed that the United States was becoming permanently divided at home, alienated from our allies, partners 

around the world, working together, we have demonstrated that 

America’s resilience, its strength and leadership in world remain 

unmatched. We have made historic investments in the source of 

America’s strength at home, our democracy, our infrastructure, our 

economic and technologic competitors. We invested in the modernization of our Military, and we have invested in our greatest 

strategic asset abroad, our network of allies and partners, which is 

growing larger, stronger, more united, and more capable than ever. 

We are standing up for our interests and values, not shrinking 

back. Not in the face of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, not 

in the face of intensifying strategies competition in the Indo-Pacific 

and around the world. 

[Anti-war protest interruption.] 

Chair MURRAY. If the witness will suspend. And I ask that everyone, again, respect this hearing. We will suspend until the room is 

cleared. 

[Pause.] 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you, Senator (sic) Blinken, if you can continue, please. 

Secretary BLINKEN. As I said we are standing up for our interests and values, not shrinking back, not in the face of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, not in the face of intensifying competition in Indo-Pacific, and around the world, not in the face of terrorism and its state sponsors. And America does not stand alone. 

We have built extraordinary coalitions with friends, who carry 

their share of the burden, which I am happy to come back to. 

Our adversaries and competitors alike, recognize that our strategies are working, and they continue to do everything they can to 

disrupt us. We now stand at a moment where many are, again, 
7 

making the bet that we are too divided; we are too distracted at 

home to stay the course. That is what is at stake with President 

Biden’s National Security Supplemental Funding Request. 

The President’s request would secure the urgent resources that 

we need to continue to lead. Secretary Austin and I believed it important for us to be here, together, today because in this mission 

as in so much that we do to advance America’s national security, 

our defense, our diplomacy, our development, must work hand-inhand. 

[Anti-war protest interruption.] 

Chair MURRAY. The committee will suspend. And again, I appreciate that people feel passionately about these issues. I would ask 

that you respect our witnesses and our committee Members and 

allow the American people to hear their testimony. We will pause 

until the room is cleared. 

Thank you, Secretary Blinken, if you can continue, please. 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you, Chair. The President’s funding 

request has four key elements. First, it provides for our enduring 

support to Israel and Ukraine, two democracies under brutal assault by actors determined to wipe their nations off the map. It will 

ensure that Israel can continue to defend its people by building on 

the diplomatic, security, and intelligence support that the United 

States has surged since Hamas’ appalling slaughter. I know that 

several—— 

[Anti-war protest interruption.] 

Chair MURRAY. The committee will suspend. And I again ask 

that those in the audience respect the people in the room and allow 

us to continue the hearing. The hearing will suspend until the disruption is removed. 

Thank you, Secretary Blinken. If you can continue, please. 

Secretary BLINKEN. So I was saying, I know that several committee members have traveled to Israel over the last 3 weeks. They 

have heard directly from Israeli officials, what they need to defend 

their people and prevent another attack like this one. And that is 

exactly what the supplemental provides, with $3.7 billion for security needs, including to help Israel bolster its air and missile defense systems. The supplemental also requests additional authority 

to draw down DOD stocks and enhances the security of our Embassy. 

As President Biden has made clear from the outset, while Israel 

has the right, indeed it has the obligation to defend itself, the way 

it does so matters. In our discussions with the Israeli government, 

the President and I have both stressed the need for Israel to operate by the rule of—— 

[Anti-war protest interruption.] 

Chair MURRAY. The committee will suspend. 

Secretary Blinken, you may continue. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you, Chair. So I was saying, the President 

and I both stressed in our conversations with the Israeli government the need for Israel to operate by the law of war and in accordance with international humanitarian law and to take all possible measures to avoid civilian casualties. 

For Ukraine, President Biden is requesting $16.3 billion to supply Ukraine’s defense, without which Russia will move quickly to 
8 

try to seize and exploit any possible opening, and to ensure that 

Ukraine can sustain the economic base and recovery that its war 

effort depends on. This funding will not only rebuild Ukraine’s 

economy and offset the damage wrought by Russia, but it will also 

help to reimagine it: Investing in new industries, infrastructure, 

and supply chains connected to Europe and to the world, secure 

and resilient clean energy, anti-corruption bodies, civil society, 

media, to be strong enough to deter and defend against aggressors 

beyond its borders, Ukraine needs a resilient economy and a vibrant democracy within its borders. 

Since Russia launched this war, the robust funding supported by 

Congress has enabled the people of Ukraine in their courageous 

fight to defend their nation. It has helped make sure that Russia’s 

invasion and strategic—— 

[Anti-war protest interruption.] 

Chair MURRAY. The committee will suspend. 

Thank you. And before I turn back over to you, Secretary 

Blinken, I just really want to thank the Capitol Police for their 

very calm and professional manner. We all appreciate it. 

Secretary Blinken, can you please continue? Thank you. 

Secretary BLINKEN. So to continue, since Russia launched this 

war, the robust funding provided by Congress has enabled the people of Ukraine in their courageous fight to defend their nation. It 

has helped make sure that Russia’s invasion is a strategic debacle, 

making it weaker in nearly every way. And it has rallied the world 

in defense of Ukraine and of the principles at the heart of the 

United Nations Charter, sovereignty, territorial independence, integrity—excuse me—and independence. Our partners are making 

significant contributions to share the burden of assistance. Turning 

our backs on their efforts would have lasting implications for our 

own security and our own standing in the world. 

The conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East have clear links, 

as both the Chair and Vice Chair have noted. Since we cut off Russia’s traditional means of supplying its military, it has turned more 

and more to Iran for assistance. In return, Moscow has supplied 

Iran with increasingly advanced military technology, which poses 

a threat to Israel’s security. Allowing Russia to prevail, with Iran’s 

support, will simply embolden both Moscow and Iran. 

Second, this funding will enable us to tackle grave humanitarian 

needs created by autocrats and terrorists, as well as by conflict and 

natural disasters in Ukraine, in Gaza, in Sudan, in Armenia, and 

other places around the world. Food, water, medicine, and other essential humanitarian assistance for civilians must be able to flow 

into Gaza. Civilians must be able to stay out of harm’s way, a task 

that is made even more difficult as Hamas uses civilians as human 

shields, and humanitarian pauses must be considered. 

Helping prevent a worsening humanitarian catastrophe aligns 

with our Nation’s most deeply held principles, including our belief 

that every civilian life is equally valuable, equally worthy of protection. Without swift and sustained humanitarian relief, the conflict 

is much more likely to spread, suffering will grow, and Hamas and 

its sponsors will benefit by fashioning themselves as the saviors of 

the very desperation that they created. 
9 

Humanitarian assistance is also vital to Israel’s security. Providing immediate aid and protection for Palestinian civilians in this 

conflict is a necessary foundation for finding partners in Gaza who 

have a different vision for the future than Hamas, and who are 

willing to help make it real. 

Third, this funding is critical to out-competing our strategic rivals. This request will bolster deterrence. It will support our allies 

and partners in the Indo-Pacific to address threats from an increasingly assertive PRC (People’s Republic of China) and to meet 

emerging challenges. It will uphold our commitment to our allies, 

including under our trilateral security partnership with Australia 

and the United Kingdom, AUKUS. And it will help countries transition to the military and defense equipment that is made in America. 

The President’s request also includes resources for the World 

Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to provide alternatives to China’s coercive financing for our partners in the developing world. It will also help ease the impact of spillovers of Russia’s war on food and energy security for the world’s most vulnerable. The proposed $2 billion appropriation and requested authorizations would generate almost $50 billion in additional development funding capacity for the World Bank and the IMF, an enormous return on our investment, demonstrating U.S. leadership in 

meeting urgent global challenges. 

Fourth and finally, the supplemental will make critical investments to protect the security of Americans here at home. That includes addressing the hemispheric challenge of irregular migration, 

strengthening our defense industrial base to ensure our military 

continues to be ready, capable, and the best-equipped fighting force 

in the world, and that we remain the arsenal for democracy. More 

than $50 billion of the security systems funding will replenish U.S. 

military stocks, strengthen our defense industrial base, and will be 

spent through American businesses. Each of these investments 

work together to achieve our mission: a stronger, safer, brighter future where America can lead from a position of strength. Let us 

come together and demonstrate to one another and to the world 

that we can rise to this moment. 

I also hear very much the passions expressed in this room and 

outside this room. All of us are committed to the protection of civilian life. All of us know the suffering that is taking place as we 

speak. All of us are determined to see it end. But all of us know 

the imperative of standing up with our allies and partners when 

their security, when their democracies are threatened. That is what 

is happening now. We stand resolutely with them even as we stand 

resolutely for the protection of innocent civilians. 

Before I close, I would just like to thank Senators for their vote 

today to send the President’s ambassadorial nominee, Jack Lew, to 

Israel at this critical time. And I encourage the Senate to do the 

same for the 26 other nominees waiting for their vote. 

Thank you very much, Madam Chair. 

[The statement follows:] 
10 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF HON. ANTONY J. BLINKEN

Chair Murray, Vice Chair Collins, distinguished members of the Appropriations 

Committee: thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today. 

Two and a half years ago, our adversaries assessed the United States was becoming permanently divided at home, and alienated from our allies and partners 

abroad. Working together, we have demonstrated that America’s resilience, 

strength, and leadership in the world remain unmatched. 

We’ve made historic investments in the sources of America’s strength at home: 

our democracy, infrastructure, and economic and technological competitiveness. 

We’ve invested in the modernization of our military. And we’ve invested in our 

greatest strategic asset abroad: our network of allies and partners, which is growing 

larger, stronger, more united, and more capable than ever. 

We’re standing up for our interests and values—not shrinking back. Not in the 

face of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. Not in the face of intensifying strategic 

competition in the Indo-Pacific and around the world. Not in the face of terrorism 

and its state sponsors. And America does not stand alone: we’ve built extraordinary 

coalitions with friends who carry their share of the burden. 

Our adversaries and competitors recognize our strategies are working—and they 

continue to do everything they can to disrupt us. We now stand at a moment where 

many are again making the bet that the United States is too divided or distracted 

at home to stay the course. That is what is at stake with President Biden’s national 

security supplemental funding request. 

The President’s request would secure the urgent resources America needs to continue to lead. Secretary Austin and I believed it is important for us to be here together, because, in this mission, as in so much we do to advance America’s national 

security, our defense, diplomacy, and development must work hand-in- hand. 

The President’s funding request has four key elements: 

First: it provides for our enduring support to Israel and Ukraine, two democracies 

under brutal assault by actors determined to wipe their nations off the map. 

It will ensure Israel can continue to defend its people, by building on the diplomatic, security, and intelligence support the United States has surged since 

Hamas’s appalling slaughter. I know several Committee members have traveled to 

Israel over the last three weeks—and heard directly from Israeli officials what they 

need to defend their people and prevent another attack like this. And that is what 

this supplemental provides, with $3.7 billion for security needs including to help 

Israel bolster its air and missile defense systems. The supplemental also requests 

additional authority to drawdown DOD stocks, and enhances U.S. embassy security. 

As President Biden has made clear from the outset, while Israel has the right— 

and indeed, the obligation—to defend itself, the way it does so matters. In our discussions with the Israeli Government, the President and I have both stressed the 

need for Israel to operate by the law of war and in accordance with international 

humanitarian law, and to take all possible measures to avoid civilian casualties. 

For Ukraine, President Biden is requesting $16.3 billion for State and USAID to 

ensure Ukraine can sustain the economic base and recovery its war effort depends 

on and to supply its defense—without which, Russia will move quickly to try to 

seize and exploit any possible opening. 

This funding will not only rebuild Ukraine’s economy and offset the damage 

wrought by Russia, but also reimagine it: investing in new industries, infrastructure, and supply chains connected to Europe and the world... secure and resilient clean energy... anti-corruption bodies, civil society, and media. To be strong 

enough to deter and defend against aggressors beyond its borders, Ukraine needs 

a resilient economy and vibrant democracy within its borders. 

Since Russia launched its war, the robust funding supported by Congress has enabled the people of Ukraine in their courageous fight to defend their nation. It has 

helped make sure Russia’s invasion is a strategic debacle, making it weaker in nearly every way. And it has rallied the world in defense of Ukraine and of the principles at the heart of the UN Charter—sovereignty, territorial integrity, and independence. Our partners are making significant contributions to share the burden of 

assistance—turning our backs on their efforts would have lasting implications for 

our security and standing in the world. 

The conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East have clear links. Since we cut off 

Russia’s traditional means of supplying its military, it has turned more and more 

to Iran for assistance. In return, Moscow has supplied Iran with increasingly advanced military technology, which poses a threat to Israel’s security. Allowing Russia to prevail with Iran’s support will embolden both Moscow and Tehran. 

Second, this funding will enable us to tackle grave humanitarian needs created 

by autocrats and terrorists, as well as by conflict and natural disasters in Ukraine, 
11 

Gaza, Sudan, Armenia, and other places around the world. Food, water, medicine, 

and other essential humanitarian assistance for civilians must be able to flow into 

Gaza. Civilians must be able to stay out of harm’s way—a task made even more 

difficult as Hamas uses civilians as human shields. And humanitarian pauses must 

be considered. 

Helping prevent a worsening humanitarian catastrophe aligns with our Nation’s 

most deeply held principles, including our belief that every civilian life is equally 

valuable, and equally worthy of protection. Without swift and sustained humanitarian relief, the conflict is much more likely to spread, suffering will grow, and 

Hamas and its sponsors will benefit by fashioning themselves as the saviors of the 

very desperation they created. 

Humanitarian assistance is also vital to Israel’s security. Providing immediate aid 

and protection for Palestinian civilians in the conflict is a necessary foundation for 

finding partners in Gaza who have a different vision for the future than Hamas— 

and who are willing to help make it real. 

Third, this funding is critical to outcompeting our strategic rivals. This request 

will bolster deterrence. It will support our allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific to 

address threats from an increasingly assertive PRC and to meet emerging challenges. It will uphold our commitments to our allies, including under our trilateral 

security partnership with Australia and the United Kingdom, AUKUS. And it will 

help countries transition to military and defense equipment that’s made in America. 

The President’s request also includes resources for the World Bank and International Monetary Fund to provide alternatives to China’s coercive financing for our 

partners in the developing world. It will also help ease the impact of spillovers of 

Russia’s war on food and energy security for the world’s most vulnerable. The proposed $2 billion appropriation and requested authorizations would generate almost 

$50 billion in additional development funding capacity for the World Bank and 

IMF—an enormous return on our investment that demonstrates U.S. leadership in 

meeting urgent global challenges. 

And fourth, the supplemental will make critical investments to protect the security of Americans at home. That includes addressing the hemispheric challenge of 

irregular migration, and strengthening our defense industrial base to ensure our 

military continues to be the most ready, capable, and best equipped fighting force 

the world has ever seen, and that we remain the arsenal for democracy. More than 

$50 billion of the security assistance funding will replenish U.S. military stocks, 

strengthen our domestic defense industrial base, and will be spent through American businesses. 

Each of these investments work together to achieve our mission: a stronger, safer, 

brighter future, where America can lead from a position of strength. Let us come 

together and demonstrate to one another and to the world that we can rise to the 

moment. 

Finally, before I close, I’d like to thank Senators for their vote today to send the 

President’s ambassadorial nominee Jack Lew to Israel at this critical time. And I 

encourage the Senate to do the same for the 26 other nominees waiting for their 

vote. 

Thank you, and I look forward to your questions. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you very much, Secretary Blinken. 

Secretary Austin, if you want to begin your testimony, please. 

Actually, if you can suspend until we have the room cleared. 

[Pause.] 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. Secretary Austin, you may begin. 

STATEMENT OF HON. LLOYD J. AUSTIN III, SECRETARY, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Secretary AUSTIN. Chair Murray, Vice Chair Collins, Ladies and 

Gentlemen, good morning. Thanks for the opportunity to discuss 

our urgent need for supplemental funding to strengthen our national security. 

On October 7th, Hamas terrorists murdered more than 1,400 

Israelis, and at least 36 Americans, and took more than 200 hostages. It was the deadliest terrorist attack in Israel’s history. It 

was cruel, hateful, and repugnant. And as former head of Central 
12 

Command, it reminded me powerfully of the crimes committed by 

ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) in Iraq and Syria. 

As President Biden has said, any democracy would respond decisively to such a vile terrorist assault. And I traveled to Israel just 

days after the attack to underscore America’s ironclad commitment 

to Israel’s security. Now, we fully understand that Hamas does not 

represent the Palestinian people, and we mourn the loss of Palestinian civilians. And I have repeatedly made clear to Israel’s leaders that protecting civilians in Gaza is both a moral responsibility 

and a strategic imperative. Democracies like ours are stronger and 

more secure when we uphold the law of war and protect civilians. 

Now, tensions remain exceptionally high, so let me outline the 

Department’s four key lines of effort. 

First, we will continue to protect American forces and citizens in 

the region. Our personnel have come under repeated attack in recent days by Iranian-backed militia groups, and these attacks must 

stop. At the President’s direction, U.S. forces have conducted precision self-defense strikes on facilities in Eastern Syria used by 

Iran’s IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps) and its affiliates. 

If Iranian-backed groups continue to attack U.S. forces, we will not 

hesitate to take further necessary measures to protect our people. 

We have also raised force protection measures across the region, 

and I have deployed a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery, as well as additional Patriot batteries. 

Second, we are flowing security assistance into Israel at the 

speed of war. We are providing air-defense capabilities, precisionguided munitions, small-diameter bombs, and other key equipment, 

including more interceptors for the life-saving Iron Dome system. 

Third, we are coordinating closely with Israel to help secure the 

release of every man, woman, and child seized by Hamas, including 

American citizens. As President Biden told the families of the missing Americans, we have no higher priority than the safe return of 

their loved ones. And we immediately provided U.S. military advisors to offer best practices for integrating hostage recovery into 

Israel’s operations. 

And finally, we swiftly strengthened our force posture in the region to deter any state or non-state actor from escalating this crisis 

beyond Gaza. Two carrier strike groups are now in the region. Last 

week, an additional F–16 Squadron arrived in the region, complementing other fighter squadrons already in theater. And all this 

underscores the President’s clear warning: no government or group 

that wishes Israel harm should try to widen this crisis. Yet even 

as we surge support into Israel, we remain focused on Ukraine. 

Nearly 20 months into Putin’s failed campaign of conquest, the 

Russian military has been badly weakened. Ukraine’s brave forces 

have taken back more than half of the territory seized by Russian 

invaders since February 2022, and that was made possible by bipartisan and principled U.S. leadership, and our coalition of some 

50 allies and partners. 

In both Israel and Ukraine, democracies are fighting ruthless 

foes who are out to annihilate them. We will not let Hamas or 

Putin win. Today’s battles against aggression and terrorism will 

define global security for years to come, and only firm American 

leadership can ensure that tyrants, and thugs, and terrorists 
13 

worldwide are not emboldened to commit more aggression and 

more atrocities. So our actions today will shape the world that our 

children and grandchildren inherit. And that is why we have submitted an urgent supplemental budget request to help fund America’s national security needs, and to stand by our partners, and to 

invest in our defense industrial base. We are requesting $10.6 billion to help Israel defend itself. The supplemental also requests 

$44.4 billion to help Ukraine continue to defend itself against Russia’s ongoing aggression. We are also requesting $3.3 billion to 

meet the U.S. military requirements in our submarine industrial 

base and to fulfill our AUKUS requirements. 

Now, this supplemental does not just help meet today’s urgent 

challenges, it also invests in our defense industrial base. When we 

send our friends munitions from our stockpiles, the money to replenish our supplies strengthens our military readiness and we invest in American industry and American workers. That also holds 

true for funding for Israel or Ukraine to procure new equipment off 

the production line. Some $50 billion of this supplemental request 

would flow through our defense industrial base, creating American 

jobs in more than 30 States, and these investments will also improve our production capacities far into the future, and help ensure 

that we are ready to tackle security challenges worldwide. And all 

that means greater prosperity at home and greater security around 

the globe. 

And finally, let me thank all of you for your leadership. Your bipartisan support ensures that we can defend America, and stand 

by the allies and partners who magnify our strength. I am also 

deeply committed to working with all of you to enact a full-year appropriations bill to keep America secure. 

As President Biden has said, American leadership is what holds 

the world together, and if we fail to lead, the costs and threats to 

the United States will only grow. We must not give our friends, our 

rivals, or our foes any reason to doubt America’s resolve. So I look 

forward to continuing to work with you to keep America secure, 

prosperous, and strong. 

Thank you. 

[The statement follows:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF HON. LLOYD J. AUSTIN III 

Good morning, Chair Murray, Vice Chair Collins. 

I’m grateful for the opportunity to discuss our urgent need for supplemental funding to both strengthen our National security and support our allies and partners. 

On October 7, Hamas terrorists murdered more than 1,400 Israelis—and at least 

36 Americans—and took more than 200 hostages. It was the deadliest attack deliberately targeting civilians in Israel’s history. It was cruel, hateful, and repugnant. 

And as a former head of Central Command, these Hamas atrocities remind me powerfully of the outrages committed by ISIS in Iraq and Syria. 

As President Biden has told Prime Minister Netanyahu, any democracy would respond swiftly and decisively to such a despicable terrorist assault. I traveled to 

Israel earlier this month to express my deep condolences to the Israeli people—and 

to underscore America’s ironclad commitment to Israel’s security. 

Hamas does not represent the Palestinian people, and we mourn the loss of Palestinian lives. I have repeatedly made clear to Israel’s leaders that protecting civilians 

in Gaza is both a moral responsibility and a strategic imperative. Hamas militants 

intentionally mix with women and children, but democracies like ours are stronger 

and more secure because we uphold the law of war and protect civilians. 
14 

Tensions across the region remain exceptionally high. So let me briefly outline the 

Department’s four key lines of effort: 

First, we will continue to protect American forces and citizens in the region. Our 

personnel have come under repeated attack in recent days by Iranian-backed militia 

groups. These unacceptable Iranian-backed attacks against U.S. forces must stop. 

At the President’s direction, U.S. forces have conducted precision self-defense strikes 

on facilities in eastern Syria used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and 

its affiliates. If Iranian backed groups continue to attack U.S. forces, we will not 

hesitate to take further necessary measures in the region to protect our people. 

We have also raised force-protection measures across the region. I have deployed 

a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery, as well as additional Patriot batteries, to further protect our people. 

Second, we are flowing security assistance to Israel at the speed of war. We are 

providing air-defense capabilities, precision-guided munitions, small-diameter 

bombs, and other key equipment, including more interceptors for the lifesaving Iron 

Dome system. 

Third, we’re coordinating closely with Israel to help secure the release of every 

man, woman, and child seized by Hamas—including American citizens. As President 

Biden told the families of the missing Americans, we have no higher priority than 

the safe return of their loved ones. We immediately provided U.S. military advisers 

to offer best practices for integrating hostage recovery into Israel’s operations. 

And finally, we swiftly strengthened our force posture in the region to deter any 

state or non-state actor from escalating this crisis beyond Gaza. Two Carrier Strike 

Groups are now in the region. Last week, an additional F–16 Squadron arrived in 

the region, complementing other fighter squadrons already in the theater. All this 

underscores the President’s clear warning: no government or group that wishes 

Israel harm should try to widen this crisis or shed more blood. 

Now, Hamas attacked Israel at a moment of global challenge. Even as we surge 

support to Israel, we remain focused on Ukraine. And thanks to bipartisan support 

in Congress, the United States has stood with the Ukrainian people and helped 

them fight back against Russia’s aggression. 

Nearly 20 months into Putin’s failed campaign of conquest, the Russian military 

has been badly weakened and Ukraine has inspired the world. Ukrainian forces 

have taken back more than half of the territory seized by Russian invaders since 

February 2022. That was made possible by bold and principled U.S. leadership— 

and the coalition of some 50 allies and partners standing with Ukraine. But Putin 

has not yet stopped his aggression. Ukraine is still under attack, and must still defend itself. 

In both Israel and Ukraine, democracies are fighting ruthless foes bent on their 

annihilation. We will not let Hamas or Putin win. Today’s battles against aggression 

and terrorism will define global security for years to come. Only firm American leadership can ensure that tyrants, thugs, and terrorists worldwide are not emboldened 

to commit more aggression and atrocities. So our actions today will shape the world 

that our children and grandchildren inherit. 

That is why we have submitted an urgent supplemental budget request to help 

fund America’s national security needs, stand by our partners, and invest in our defense industrial base. 

So, we are requesting $10.6 billion to sharpen Israel’s ability to defend itself. This 

includes $5.2 billion to help Israel increase the capacity of its Iron Dome and other 

air-defense systems; $4.4 billion to replenish DOD stocks provided to Israel; and $1 

billion to boost our own capacity to produce critical munitions, especially 155-millimeter artillery. 

The supplemental also requests $44.4 billion to ensure that Ukraine can continue 

to defend itself against Russia’s aggression. This includes $12 billion for the 

Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative to directly fund acquisition of key weapons 

for Ukraine; $18 billion to replace DOD stocks provided to Ukraine; $10.7 billion 

for cybersecurity and intelligence support, as well as for the enhanced presence of 

U.S. personnel deployed in Europe; and $3.7 billion to expand production capacity 

in our industrial base. 

We’re also requesting $3.3 billion to meet U.S. military requirements in our submarine industrial base (SIB). The Administration’s supplemental request ensures 

that we maintain our focus on strengthening deterrence in the Indo-Pacific region 

and supporting key allies and partners as part of our efforts to maintain peace and 

stability. 

For the Department of Defense, the $3.3 billion for the SIB will accelerate build 

and sustainment rates for attack submarines, one of our most effective capabilities 

for maintaining deterrence. While this funding is necessary to support U.S. national 

needs from our submarine industrial base, these investments will also support U.S. 
15 

commitments under AUKUS, of which the first major deliverable is to support Australia in acquiring contentionally-armed, nuclear-powered submarines. 

Now, this supplemental request does not just help meet today’s urgent security 

challenges. It also makes key investments in our own defense industrial base. 

When we send our friends munitions from our stockpiles, the money to replenish 

our supplies strengthens our military readiness-and we invest in American industry 

and American workers. That also holds true for funding for Israel or Ukraine to procure new equipment off the production line. Some $50 billion of this supplemental 

request would flow through our defense industrial base, rushing aid to our partners 

while creating good American jobs in more than 30 States. 

These investments will also significantly improve our production capacities far 

into the future—and help ensure that we are ready to tackle security challenges 

worldwide. And all that means greater prosperity at home and greater security 

worldwide. 

Finally, let me thank you all for your leadership. Your bipartisan support ensures 

that we can defend America and stand by the allies and partners who magnify our 

strength. 

I am also deeply committed to working with you all to enact a full-year appropriations bill to keep America secure. 

As President Biden said, ‘‘American leadership is what holds the world together.’’ 

If we fail to lead, the cost and the threats to the United States will only grow. We 

must not give our friends, our rivals, or our foes any reason to doubt America’s resolve. 

I look forward to continuing to work with you all to support Israel and Ukraine 

and to bolster our defense industrial base—and to keep America secure, prosperous, 

and strong. Thank you. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you, Secretary Austin. 

We will now begin a round of 5-minute questions of our witnesses, and I ask our colleagues to keep track of your clock and 

stay within those 5 minutes. 

We have a lot of urgent challenges: Getting aid to Israel as soon 

as possible, continuing our support for Ukraine, and addressing urgent humanitarian needs globally. Some of my colleagues in the 

House and a few in the Senate are pushing to provide only the 

emergency military funding for Israel and not the rest of the President’s request in this security supplemental. 

Secretary Blinken and Secretary Austin, I would like each of you 

to address this question: Why is it so important that we provide 

supplemental funding for Ukraine, the Indo-Pacific, and humanitarian assistance, in addition to military aid to Israel? 

And Secretary Blinken, I will begin with you. 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you very much, Chair. 

I think it is very important to understand that the elements of 

this request work together as a package. As you know, the defense 

industrial base operates in a complex way, it is an interdependent 

unit, and making these investments together it allows us to do 

what is needed to strengthen the defense industrial base and to 

seize the benefits and efficiencies that come from making these investments together, rather than making them piecemeal. 

We also know, as you have heard, that increasingly Russia and 

Iran are working together to challenge our leadership, to hem us 

in globally to pose a growing threat to our own security as well as 

to that of our allies and partners. They have been partners in a 

devastating war in Syria, and now we have Iranian proxies firing 

missiles from Syria in Northern Israel. 

Russia could stop this, but it does not. Instead to the contrary, 

its government is hosting Hamas for talks in Moscow. Iran is sending UAVs to Russia to attack Ukrainian civilians. So we are seeing 

the profound connections here. 
16 

What happens in Ukraine, what happens in the Middle East also 

matters for the Indo-Pacific. Beyond Europe, we know that our allies, as well as our adversaries, as well as our competitors, are 

watching that conflict. They are watching our response, the global 

impacts of Russia’s unprovoked War of Aggression against Ukraine, 

further stress, the importance of ensuring that the Indo-Pacific 

does not learn the wrong lessons from these conflicts. 

So the funding requests that we have put before you is vital to 

securing a free and open Indo-Pacific in the face of mounting challenges in that region, to threaten and undermine the International 

Rules-Based Order, including things like freedom of navigation. 

In other words, to put it succinctly, for our adversaries, be they 

States or non-state, this is all one fight and we have to respond in 

a way that recognizes that. If we start to peel off pieces of this 

package, they will see that, they will understand that we are playing whack-a-mole while they cooperate increasingly and pose an 

ever greater threat to our security as well as for that of our allies 

and partners. 

And one final thing, I think when it comes to the humanitarian 

assistance, we can come back to this it is first and foremost vital 

because this is who we are. We know that when it comes down to 

it, in each and every one of these conflicts, people are suffering: 

men, women and children, parents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, 

grandparents. And I think it is profoundly who we are to want to 

do everything we can to assist them, to try to lift some of the horrific burden that they are bearing from being caught in the midst 

of conflict. 

At the same time, it is vitally important, as a strategic proposition, that we provide the assistance that we can to help people 

in need. We have seen Hamas and other groups play the siren song 

of nihilism to try to attract people to their perverted cause. We 

want to make sure that we have a better response, that we have 

a better answer across the board. That is part of the strategic proposition as well as one that is profoundly humanitarian. Thank you. 

Chair MURRAY. Secretary Austin. 

Secretary AUSTIN. Thanks, Chair Murray. I think it is important 

to remind ourselves that what happens in Ukraine and what happens in Israel matters not to just Ukraine and Israel, it matters 

to us. It affects our national security as well. We also have to remind ourselves that these countries are in a fight. They are fighting every day and there are people dying every day. 

And the Ukraine, Putin continues to attack civilians and commit 

war crimes that are despicable. And so these countries need, urgently need the resources to ensure that they can continue to defend their sovereign territory. You know, in Ukraine, Putin has felt 

that he could wait us out, and that is part of his strategy, the main 

part of his strategy. 

He feels that the West will get tired of supporting Ukraine, and 

he will soon have his way. If that is the case, if we do not support 

Ukraine, then Putin wins. But Putin will not stop in Ukraine. We 

know that. We all know that. And so I think it is important to do 

what is necessary to support Ukraine and Israel and to help them 

defend their sovereign territory. 
17 

But as the Secretary said—as Secretary Blinken said, this is also 

an investment in our defense industrial base. It helps us replenish 

our stockpiles and gives us additional depth and agility that helps 

us do what we have done over the years, over the centuries—over 

the decades, excuse me, around the world. And so I think this is 

very important that we provide the support, and it is important 

that we provide the support now to both—in both cases. Thank 

you, Chair. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. And if my committee members will indulge me, I just want to ask Secretary Blinken on the $10 billion 

in humanitarian assistance. Some of my colleagues have raised 

concern that that could end up in the wrong hands, including 

Hamas. Can you just walk the committee through the reason why 

you requested it and how you are confident that if it is provided 

in places like Gaza will not end up in the hand of terrorists? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you very much. First, let us be clear 

that the needs are desperate. The needs for the most basic things— 

food, water, medicine, fuel—all of these are literally a matter of life 

and death just to focus in on Gaza and we know that they are running out. Hospitals do not have the fuel they need to operate. Men, 

women, and children displaced, well over a million people displaced 

in Gaza, about half of them under the care of UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near 

East) right now desperately need the most basic things in order to 

survive. 

So from day one, we have been working with the Israeli government, with Egypt, with the UN (United Nations) agencies, as well 

as with other actors to try to make sure that assistance could get 

into people who need it in Gaza, but get in a way that does not 

go to the people who do not need it, and that is Hamas. 

So we have set up a system where assistance is coming through 

Rafah, the gate between Egypt and Gaza. The assistance is checked 

by Israel at a site that has been established to do that, so that 

every truck that goes in is verified by Israel as well as by the Egyptian authorities. The trucks go in—these are UN trucks—they go 

in, they connect to other UN trucks on the other side of the line 

in Gaza. These trucks then go to distribution facilities that are run 

by UN agencies. 

The supplies are then taken from those agencies to various 

points, to hospitals, to bakeries, because bread is critical and to 

other endpoints. Throughout this process, we have the ability, and 

others have an ability, to track where the assistance is going. We 

are then able to do monitoring on the other end by contacting the 

designated recipients to ensure that it has actually gotten to where 

it is supposed to go, and not been diverted. 

To date, we do not have reports either from the UN or from 

Israel that this assistance has been diverted from its intended recipients, but it is something that we are going to track very closely. 

Can I promise that you and this committee that there will be a 

100-percent delivery to the designated recipients? No. There will 

inevitably some spillage. We have not seen it to date, but I think 

we have to anticipate that. But the overwhelming, overwhelming 

majority of the assistance, thus far, is getting to people who need 

it, and we need more. We have gotten up to over 50 trucks a day 
18 

before the conflict in Gaza, before Hamas’ aggression against 

Israel, and its response. 

The UN and other agencies and other organizations providing relief, we are sending in between 500 and 800 trucks a day. Right 

now we are up to almost 60. We are trying to get to 100 this week. 

That is the bare minimum of what is needed, but we have got to 

do it and we believe we have mechanisms in place to make sure 

that that assistance gets to people who need it, not to Hamas. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. 

Vice Chair Collins. 

Vice Chair COLLINS. Secretary Blinken, let me follow up on Chair 

Murray’s question. Does Israel agree that there are sufficient safeguards to prevent humanitarian aid from being diverted to Hamas 

rather than reaching the innocent civilians whom we all want to 

assist? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Yes, Vice Chair. And this is something that 

we have worked closely with Israel as well as with other actors involved. And as I said, the assistance that is going in from Egypt 

in Gaza is first checked by the Israelis as well as by the Egyptians. 

And then as I mentioned, we have some methods to track it to 

make sure it gets to where it is supposed to go. To date, neither 

the Israelis nor the UN have said that the aid has been diverted, 

and we are in constant, almost daily contact with Israel to make 

sure that the process we have established is working and also to 

find ways to expand it. 

One of the areas where we do need to do more and do need to 

do better is particularly with fuel because hospitals need fuel to 

run, desalination, plants need fuel to operate. This is an area 

where we are working to find a way forward that meets the needs, 

but also with the assurances that Hamas won’t abscond with it. 

Vice Chair COLLINS. Secretary Austin, as you indicated in your 

opening remarks, Iranian-backed terrorists proxy groups in the region have launched numerous drone and rocket attacks against our 

forces, U.S. forces in Syria and Iraq. According to press reports, 

there have been at least 20 such attacks and 19 U.S. service members have been wounded. 

It is imperative that Iran and its proxy groups understand that 

they cannot attack American Forces with impunity. I know that 

last week President Biden ordered two U.S. strikes against facilities in Syria used by Iranian proxies to threaten our troops. But 

the New York Times has reported over the weekend that Iranianbacked terrorists continue to attack U.S. forces in the region even 

after these airstrikes. 

Since these U.S. airstrikes apparently have not been sufficient to 

deter additional attacks on our troops by Iranian-backed proxies, 

what else is the Department doing to stop attacks against American troops? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Thanks, Vice Chair. First of all, let me emphasize that the protection, the safety of our troops and our civilians 

is of utmost important to me, and utmost important to the President as well. We have taken a number of steps to make sure that 

we increase our force protection posture. We have deployed a number of assets into the region as well. We have been clear, the President has been clear, and I have been clear, Vice Chair, that if this 
19 

does not stop, then we will respond. And so we maintain the right 

to respond. We have the capability to do that, and we will respond 

at a time and place of our choosing. 

Vice Chair COLLINS. Secretary Blinken, Israel has every right to 

defend its citizens from Hamas, including seeking out the terrorists 

and Gaza and destroying them while also trying to minimize civilian casualties. There is a critical distinction here: Hamas targeted 

civilians; they kidnapped innocent children as well as people as old 

as 85 years old. Israel is not doing that. As Israel has begun to respond and Gaza to Hamas’ indiscriminate and barbaric targeting 

of innocent Israeli citizens, some, and we have heard it today, have 

called for a ceasefire. A ceasefire would be a strategic victory for 

Hamas. It would simply allow Hamas to bide its time and prepare 

for future attacks, and pay no price for the greatest loss of Jewish 

lives in a single day since the Holocaust. Could you clarify the Administration’s position on a ceasefire? 

Secretary BLINKEN. First of all, Senator, I fully agree with you 

that no country, no country could tolerate what Israel suffered on 

October 7th. And it is extraordinary, the extent to which that day 

has receded in memory for so many. I was in Israel shortly after 

the attack. I have been going to Israel professionally for 30 years, 

and longer than that in my own life, and I have never seen what 

we have all seen, and what Israel experienced on that day, in 

terms of the impact that it has on that society, almost to man, 

woman, and child. 

And as we know, it was not just the attack itself and the vulnerability that it revealed, it was the nature of the attack with young 

people chased down and gunned down at a dance party with, as 

you said, children executed in front of their parents, parents executed in front of their children, families in a final embrace, burned 

alive, people beheaded. I could go on. You have seen the pictures; 

you have seen the video. I have heard from many eyewitnesses to 

these atrocities, including, and if you will forgive me because, 

again, these stories recede so quickly, a family at its breakfast 

table at one of the kibbutzes. And by the way, the profound irony 

of attacks on kibbutzes, the very people who most ardently believe 

and want a future of peace between Israelis and Palestinians, a future of two States. A family of four, a young boy and girl, 6 and 

8 years old, and their parents around the breakfast table: the father, his eye gouged out in front of his kids; the mother’s breast 

cut off; the girl’s foot amputated; the boy’s fingers cut off before 

they were executed. And then their executioner sat down and had 

a meal. That is what this society is dealing with. And no nation 

could tolerate that. 

And as we have said repeatedly, as President Biden has repeatedly made clear, Israel has not only the right but the obligation to 

defend itself and to try to take every possible step to make sure 

this does not happen again. We have been equally clear that it is 

vitally important how Israel does this. And the imperative of doing 

everything possible to protect civilians as well as to care for those 

who are endangered by the conflict is something that we feel 

strongly. 

You are, of course, right that this is a special burden on Israel, 

because Hamas, cynically and monstrously, puts, intentionally, ci-
20 

vilians in harm’s way by hiding behind them, by using them as 

human shields, by placing its people, by placing its equipment, by 

placing its ammunition, its weapons, its command posts underneath hospitals, underneath schools in residential complexes. But 

for each of us, and particularly for democracies like Israel and the 

United States, we have to bear the burden of doing everything we 

possibly can to ensure that civilians are not harmed and to care for 

those who need our help. 

When it comes to a ceasefire in this moment, you are exactly 

right, that would simply consolidate what Hamas has been able to 

do and allow it to remain where it is and potentially repeat what 

it did another day. And that is not tolerable. No nation would tolerate it. We do believe that we have to consider things like humanitarian pauses to make sure that assistance can get to those who 

need it and that people can be protected and get out of harm’s way. 

But we cannot have a situation where there is a reversion to the 

status quo, where when this is over, it goes back to Hamas being 

responsible for the governance and so-called security of Gaza because that is simply an invitation to repeat what happened. And 

again, no nation would tolerate that. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. 

Senator Durbin. 

Senator DURBIN. Thank you, Madam Chair. Six weeks ago, the 

Senate, on a bipartisan basis, gathered with President Zelenskyy 

in the Old Senate Chamber. It was an historic and memorable moment. Many things were said about the courage of the Ukrainian 

people, which were well deserved. But I recall one particular statement made by President Zelenskyy, which I would like to ask you 

about this morning. 

He was asked about the course of the war and said: The heroism 

of his people has been demonstrated over and over again. But he 

said, ‘‘Without the continued financial support of the United States 

and NATO, we will lose this war.’’ He was unequivocal; he repeated 

it: ‘‘Without the financial support of the United States and NATO, 

we will lose this war.’’ 

Secretary Austin, was he exaggerating? 

Secretary AUSTIN. He was not, Senator. As you know, we have 

provided significant amounts of security assistance to the Ukraine. 

And not only that, based upon our leadership, our example, some 

50 other countries have come in and worked with us in a coalition 

to also provide assistance. And so they have provided some $35 billion of their own to this overall effort. And I think our leadership 

in this effort really, really matters. 

Senator DURBIN. Secretary Blinken, we know why we are asking 

these questions. The proposals coming from the new Speaker of the 

House suggests that he would fund the support for Israel requested 

by the administration, but not fund the support for Ukraine. In the 

starkest terms, what would that mean if we were to step back and 

not fund support for the people of Ukraine to repel Putin at this 

moment? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Senator, I think it would do both terrible 

harm to our values, but also to our core interests. Values because 

I think all of us are united in wanting to respond to aggressors, to 
21 

bullies who try to lord it over their neighbors. And in the midst of 

doing that, inflicting credible suffering on people that—— 

Senator DURBIN. What impact would that have on NATO? 

Secretary BLINKEN. I am sorry? 

Senator DURBIN. What impact would it have on NATO if the 

United States does not fund—— 

Secretary BLINKEN. Well, I would say two things. First, what we 

have seen is a remarkable coming together of our NATO alliance; 

an alliance that has actually grown stronger and larger as a result 

of Putin’s aggression; an alliance that has also stepped up in a 

major way. Its individual members in terms of burden sharing, we 

often and rightly, have concerns in different conflicts in the past 

about inadequate burden sharing. 

This is an instance where we have seen very significant burden 

sharing that would almost certainly go away if we go away. If you 

look at it, total assistance to Ukraine, going back to February of 

2022, the United States has provided about $75 billion; our allies 

in partners, $90 billion. If you look at budget support, the United 

States has provided about $22 billion during that period; allies and 

partners, $49 billion during that period. Military support, we provided about $43 billion; allies and partners, $33 billion. Humanitarian assistance, the United States, $2.3 billion; allies and partners, $4.5 billion, plus another $18 to $20 billion in caring for the 

many refugees who went to Europe and outside of Ukraine. 

So I think what the message it would send, first of all, to each 

and every one of these countries is: The United States is abandoning ship, well, we may as well do too. And second, our alliance 

itself is founded on the proposition that we are all in this together. 

I think they would see this as a retreat from our own responsibilities. 

Finally, and this is very important, and you heard the Secretary 

of Defense say this: There is no doubt in my mind that if Putin is 

allowed to continue to act with impunity, that not only would he 

not stop at Ukraine and potentially go to a NATO country next, 

which would invoke our Article V obligations to our allies and partners, it would send a message to would-be aggressors everywhere 

in the world, that he can get away with it, so can we. 

And then we are likely to have a world full of conflict, and that 

is a world that is not good for the United States. We are much better sustaining our effort now, seeing this to success than having to 

pay a much higher price later when we have to deal with a world 

full of aggression. 

Senator DURBIN. Mr. Secretary, it cannot be a coincidence that 

Putin would invite the head of the Hamas terrorist organization to 

Moscow just days after the October 7th attack, the terrible massacre, which you described in some detail, and I have heard so 

many depictions. So do you believe there is an allied effort between 

Putin’s cause and cause of the Hamas terrorists? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Putin is very much trying to take advantage 

of the Hamas attack on Israel in the hopes that it will distract us, 

that it will divert our focus away from Ukraine, and away from his 

aggression in Ukraine, and that it will result in the United States 

pulling back, pulling back its resources, pulling back its support. 

And at the same time he has allied with the exact elements that 
22 

are trying to wreak havoc in Israel. So we see these things as being 

very much joined, which is one of the reasons our request is a joint 

request. 

Senator DURBIN. Thank you. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. 

Senator Graham. 

Senator GRAHAM. Thank you. Secretary Blinken, thank you very 

much for helping us, the 10 of us who went over to Israel and 

Egypt and Saudi Arabia. 

Just to kind of tighten things up a little bit. From an Israeli 

point-of-view, there will be no ceasefire until Hamas ceases to be 

a threat to the State of Israel. Do you agree with that statement? 

Secretary BLINKEN. I do. 

Senator GRAHAM. Okay. So no ceasefire until Hamas ceases to be 

a threat makes perfect sense to me. Do you believe it is the goal 

of Hamas to destroy Israel, not to have a two-state solution? 

Secretary BLINKEN. You do not have to take my word for it. Take 

Hamas’ word for it, it is in their—— 

Senator GRAHAM. I could not agree with—do you agree with that, 

General Austin? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I do. They have said so. 

Senator GRAHAM. All right. So we are fighting somebody who is 

not trying to help the Palestinians. They are trying to kill all the 

Jews. Would it be fair to say that Hamas is a modern day version 

of religious Nazis? 

Secretary BLINKEN. I think there are different ways to qualify it. 

I would simply say that—— 

Senator GRAHAM. Well is that a good characterization? 

Secretary BLINKEN [continuing]. One of the most recent—I think 

the best recent analogy, Senator, is ISIS. 

Senator GRAHAM. Is that okay with you for me to call them religious Nazis? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I agree with Secretary Blinken. There is a direct parallel to ISIS, as a matter of fact, I think they are—— 

Senator GRAHAM. Yeah. Okay. Yeah, well, that is right, ISIS, 

Nazis, is all bad. We all agree with that. Do you agree without 

Iran’s help, Hamas could not do this? 

Secretary BLINKEN. In short, yes. There is no doubt that Hamas 

would not be Hamas without—— 

Senator GRAHAM. As a matter of fact, General Austin, some estimates are that 93 percent of all the money Hamas receives comes 

from Iran. Is that correct? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I do not know the exact percentage, but I 

would say the vast majority does come from—— 

Senator GRAHAM. Well, all the reports I have seen from the administration it is 90 percent. So Hamas, ISIS, Nazis, whatever you 

want to call them, they want to kill all the Jews. So if I were Jewish, I would want to stop them. They are being supported by Iran. 

Our troops in Syria and Iraq, they are there to protect against the 

rise of ISIS. Is that true, General Austin? 

Secretary AUSTIN. That is right. They are going—— 

Senator GRAHAM. I mean, they are just not hanging out with no 

other place to go. They are there because it is in our national security interest that ISIS not come back. Do you agree with that? 
23 

Secretary AUSTIN. That is correct, sir. 

Senator GRAHAM. Okay. Is it a red line for Iran to orchestrate 

an attack on our forces that kills an American in Syria or Iraq? Is 

that a red line? Can we tell the Iranians today in case they are 

watching, if an American is killed by your proxies in Syria and 

Iraq, we are coming for you. Can you say that? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I think Iran should be held accountable for the 

activities of these Iranian-backed—— 

Senator GRAHAM. Okay. Does that mean that we would consider 

going to the source of the problem? The great Satan is Iran, not 

Israel. It is not the United States. Can we say publicly to the families who have service members over in Iraq and Syria that we will 

hit Iran if they try to kill an American through their proxies? Can 

we say that? 

Secretary AUSTIN. What we have said, and what we will continue 

to say, Senator, is that we are going to hold—— 

Senator GRAHAM. Well, I wish you would be more clear because 

I will tell you this, if one of these soldiers is killed, I am going to 

say it, and I hope other people will join me. If there is an attack 

by Hezbollah in the North, General Austin, that would put the 

State of Israel at threat. Would that be an escalation of the war? 

Secretary AUSTIN. It would be an escalation, and Israel would be 

forced to fight on two fronts? 

Senator GRAHAM. I agree with that. And they have over 100,000 

precision-guided rockets and missiles pointed to Israel; is that correct? 

Secretary AUSTIN. That is correct. 

Senator GRAHAM. Is it also correct that Iran is the biggest benefactor of Hezbollah? 

Secretary AUSTIN. That is absolutely correct. 

Senator GRAHAM. Can we say to Iran, the Ayatollah, who is a religious Nazi, that if you escalate the second front, if you activate 

Hezbollah against the State of Israel to create a second front, we 

will come after you. Can we say that? Is that a red line? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Whether or not we attack Iran because of a 

decision on a part of a Lebanese Hezbollah, of course that is a fundamental decision, and also would require congressional support. 

Senator GRAHAM. I am running out of time. I am going to say 

it if it happens. I hope it does not. Finally, do you agree with me, 

Secretary Blinken, that one of the main reasons this attack occurred is Iran wants to stop the reconciliation between Saudi Arabia and Israel? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Yes. Those who are opposed to normalization 

are Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran. 

Senator GRAHAM. I just want to end it with this. I will do everything I can as a Republican to help the Biden administration to 

achieve reconciliation between Saudi Arabia and Israel with the 

understanding we are going to help the Palestinian people postHamas. That is the only way this ends. So I congratulate you. I 

urge you to continue to drive toward peace between Saudi Arabia 

and Israel. Do not let Iran win by getting us off track. 

And General Austin, I admire you very much, but we need to be 

clear, crystal clear as to what happens if Iran kills an American 
24 

soldier or if they open up a second front, and I hope you will let 

them know what our red lines are. Thank you. 

Chair MURRAY. Senator Reed. 

Senator REED. Thank you, Madam Chairman. The first point I 

would like to raise is with respect to our colleagues in the House, 

their proposal, the Republican leadership, not only do they not fund 

Ukraine, which I think your testimonies indicate as a vital imperative to the United States, they also want to offset the funding by 

taking money from the IRS. 

Obviously, I do not think they read The Wall Street Journal because just a few days ago, The Wall Street Journal reported that 

in 2021, the Americans failed to pay $688 billion in taxes. So if we 

do not invest in the IRS, we are giving up billions and billions of 

dollars. And I think that point has to be recognized as we go forward and negotiate with the House. 

But let me turn now to the issue at hand. We are talking about, 

Secretary Austin, sending resources to Ukraine. You are now the 

Civilian Secretary of Defense, but you were a distinguished Army 

Officer and Commander of CENTCOM (United States Central 

Command). If we do not send the resources, does that increase the 

probability that someday we will have to send young Americans 

into the European Theater? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Absolutely. Senator Reed, I think as we said 

earlier, if Putin is successful, he will not stop at Ukraine, and if 

you are a Baltic state, you are thinking, I am next. And there is 

no question in my mind that sooner or later it will be, he will challenge NATO, and we will find ourselves in a shooting match. 

Senator REED. And so in one sense, this comes down to a choice 

between lending them the tools to do the job or seeing young Americans facing combat? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I agree, Senator. 

Senator REED. Thank you. Again, Secretary Austin, you pointed 

out with respect to the efforts in Gaza that humanitarian assistance is not just a good thing to do, it is a strategic necessity for 

the operations of Israeli Forces. Is that correct? 

Secretary AUSTIN. That is absolutely correct. 

Senator REED. Now, it would seem to me that they could and 

should move into position in areas they control hospitals, shelter, 

and food, and make it available to the Palestinian people and do 

all they can to assist those people to reach those areas. Is that appropriate? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Absolutely, Senator. And just so you know, I 

talked to my counterpart, Minister of Defense Gallant, nearly every 

day, and every day I talk to him I remind him of the necessity of 

getting humanitarian assistance into Gaza. We just had such a 

conversation yesterday, and this is really, really important for a 

number of reasons, but you know, I am delighted to see that the 

flow has increased, but to the Secretary’s point, we need to increase 

it much, much more. 

Senator REED. I think not only do we need to increase it, but also 

in terms of the strategy, of the perception of the world with respect 

to Israel, is that they have to make it clear that their foe is Hamas, 

not the Palestinian people, and that they will go, indeed, out of 

their way to try to protect the Palestinian people. I think that is 
25 

essential. And it is not just a humanitarian impulse; it is very 

practical, strategic, operational technique. 

Secretary AUSTIN. I agree, Senator. 

Senator REED. We tried to make this point also, Mr. Secretary, 

Secretary Blinken, in our trips and we suggested that, to the 

Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, that he can put resources into humanitarian relief, and I would urge you and your colleagues to try 

to get all of the Nations in that area to provide the resources. The 

Israelis control the ground, they can control the operations, but the 

money for aid to Palestinian people should come from the international community. 

Secretary BLINKEN. Yeah, Senator, I very much agree with that. 

The United States as it stands is, by far, the leading donor to the 

Palestinians. We provide $1.6 billion in assistance through various 

agencies to the Palestinians over the pendency of this administration. And we would like to see other partners, other allies step up 

and do the same thing. That is something that we have been very 

clear about in our own conversations. And I really applaud the 

members of this committee and others who have been to the region 

recently and have been pushing that as well. 

Senator REED. Just a final point, my time is expiring. We have 

also a necessity to get many American citizens out of Gaza, and 

can you assure us that you are doing all you can to achieve that 

objective? 

Secretary BLINKEN. We are, Senator. We are working on this 

every single day. We have about 400 American citizens and their 

family members, so it is roughly a thousand people who are stuck 

in Gaza and want to get out. I am focused on this intensely. My 

entire Department is as well, both in the region and here, we are 

working with various parties to try to facilitate their departure 

from Gaza. 

The impediment is simple, it is Hamas. And we have not yet 

found a way to get them out by whatever—through whatever place, 

and by whatever means, that Hamas is not blocking. But we are 

working that with intermediaries, we are working that for them. 

There are also another, roughly, 5,000 third country nationals from 

other countries seeking to get out. 

So this is something that we are intensely focused on. We have 

been in close communication, as best we can, with Americans who 

are stuck in Gaza. We have had about 5,500 communications that 

we have initiated, phone calls, emails, WhatsApp, to be in touch 

with them to try to guide them as best we can and to work for their 

ability to leave. 

Senator REED. Thank you very much. 

Chair MURRAY. Senator Moran. 

Senator MORAN. Chairwoman, thank you very much. Upon the 

Congressional receipt of the President’s request for this emergency 

supplemental, my first request was of our own committee leadership that we have this hearing, and I thank both of you for honoring that request. Congress has a constitutional responsibility to 

deal with the dollars that will be spent, and I want this committee 

as we should do, to treat that in a significant and serious manner. 

I think a markup would be important, but I would certainly indicate that changes in input from this committee and from Congress 
26 

are required: One, to make the package better, and two, to make 

it more amenable toward passage by both the House and the Senate. I was originally, and continued to be disappointed that Secretary Mayorkas is not with us, but I am pleased to know that that 

is occurring next week. I want the committee, and our witnesses 

and representation of the administration to know that there are 

many of us who believe our borders are a national security issue 

as well. That emergency supplemental financial aid should be included. 

But I also want you to know that we need the administration to 

work with us on policy changes, the laws and policies at the border, 

financial support for changes at the border, for additional personnel are insufficient, but we need a different approach toward 

the push and pull of those people around the world who are seeking entry into the United States. I am interested in seeing a package pass the Congress and be signed into law, but I want to make 

certain the administration knows that there are many members of 

Congress who are serious about the issues of national security at 

our own borders. 

I want to ask a couple of questions and I will submit more in 

writing, but I would like an insurance, and maybe this comes from 

you, Secretary Austin, of a commitment; I want to make certain 

that as we assist Ukraine, we are assisting Ukraine in a way that 

allows them to succeed. I do not want this to be just a stalemate. 

I do not want Ukraine to have the dollars necessary not to lose. I 

want Ukraine, with our help and others, to have the opportunity 

with their capabilities, their own personnel, to win. What would be 

your response, Secretary Austin? 

Secretary AUSTIN. My response would be—my response is, Senator, that is exactly what we are doing. If you go back to the beginning of this effort here, all of us were saying, or many of us were 

saying that Ukraine would not survive Russia’s onslaught for more 

than 2 days. So here we are a year later and not only have they 

defeated Russia in a number of battles, but they have gained—regained 50 percent of the territory that Russia initially occupied. 

And Putin is a strategic failure right now. He has not achieved 

any strategic objective that he set out to achieve. He never conquered Kyiv. He has been stuck, essentially, in the same place in 

terms of his frontline trace on the battlefield for a long time now. 

I think that based upon where they started and where we are now, 

and what they continue to do, I would say that Ukrainians have 

made remarkable progress. 

And our goal is to make sure that they can continue to do that. 

So we are talking to them every week. I am talking to my counterpart every week to ascertain what his requirements are, and we 

are moving with urgency to make sure that we can fill those requirements where possible. 

Senator MORAN. Secretary Austin, tell me, if you would, tell us, 

how does a failure to fund Ukraine embolden China, embolden 

Iran, embolden Hamas, embolden Russia? We have had circumstances in our history, including recent history, at least in my 

view, in which we sent a message to the world that we are not a 

faithful ally, and to our enemies, to our adversaries that we are not 

a threat. Would the failure to fund Ukraine in this circumstance 
27 

meet that criteria in which we fail to demonstrate our capabilities, 

our willingness, our statuitis, and what would be the consequences 

of that message being sent? 

As you know, there are those who say that we should be focused 

on someplace else besides Ukraine. But doesn’t our failure to focus 

on Ukraine create huge and significant problems elsewhere in the 

world with our adversaries, and diminish the support of our allies? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I think it sends a horrible message to our adversaries, Senator. I think, you know, our adversaries would like 

to build a narrative that we are not a trustworthy ally or partner, 

and we see some of that beginning to play out in the media space 

right now. They are seeking to take advantage of every opportunity, and they would like to prove that the United States is 

something else other than it is. And we are the world’s most reliable ally or partner, and I think it is necessary to demonstrate that 

we are going to stick by our partners. 

Senator MORAN. Is it more than coincidence that we have so 

many challenges in this world all occurring now at the same time? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I think a number of things have come together 

to cause what we are seeing happen, but certainly a failure, on our 

part, to follow through in support of our allies or partners exacerbates some of the things that we are seeing right now. 

Senator MORAN. Thank you, sir. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. 

Senator Tester. 

Senator TESTER. I want to thank the Chairman and Ranking 

Member. I want to thank both of you, Secretaries, for being here 

today. I appreciate the work you do. I appreciate the difficulty of 

the work you do. I want to touch quickly on why we are here, and 

that is a supplemental to help Israel and help Ukraine with humanitarian aid and infrastructure money for subs in particular. 

I want to start by saying the attack on October 7th by Hamas 

on Israel was horrific, and it is critical that we provide our ally 

with the necessary tools to defeat Hamas. And I want to thank you 

two for working in that way because we cannot allow terror and 

enemies of democracy to win. And that is why it is critical that this 

committee shows the leadership so Congress can deliver a package 

that supports Israel and counters Vladimir Putin. 

I happen to believe that America is the greatest country that is 

ever existed on the face of the earth, and we need to support Israel. 

We need to make sure we are standing up to Russia. And I think 

we are able to walk and chew gum at the same time. 

I want to be very clear today as Chairman of the Defense subcommittee that sets the Defense Department’s budget, I will be 

working with Republicans and Democrats and colleagues to deliver 

a package that replenishes America’s weapon stock, supports our 

democratic allies, and sends a clear message to the enemies of freedom and democracy that they will not prevail. 

My question is this, and this for you Secretary Austin: Can you 

talk about of the supplemental requests for Ukraine: how much of 

that is staying here to resupply our industrial base in this country, 

is being spent in this country for our security to replenish that industrial base? 

Secretary AUSTIN. For Ukraine? 
28 

Senator TESTER. Yes. 

Secretary AUSTIN. Okay. So thanks, Senator. We are asking for $44.4 billion in support of Ukraine. Some $18 billion of that 

amount goes to—enable us to replenish our stocks, and so we 

would buy—we would purchase American weapons and munitions 

from American companies to do that. $12 billion of that amount 

goes to support the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. And so 

this is buying new products, new weapons, new munitions from 

American companies. $5 billion of that supports our troops who are 

currently deployed overseas. We surged a number of brigades to 

Europe as this began, and we have to sustain them. And then $2.7 

billion of that amount goes to expansion of facilities to increase capacity and accelerate production of critical munitions. And then finally, $1 billion for the acquisition of critical defense articles, which 

includes munitions as well. So this money is going right back into 

the coffers of America, and it is going to create jobs, it is going to 

sustain jobs, and it is going to provide opportunities for Americans. 

I think you know, Senator, that the first four supplementals that we asked you for, and we received bipartisan support on, over $27 

billion of that money that we received was invested in some—over 

30 States here in the United States. And I think that is real money 

going in the pockets of Americans. 

Senator TESTER. And in the end, the supplemental will make the 

United States stronger, correct? 

Secretary AUSTIN. That is correct, Senator. 

Senator TESTER. We have heard a lot about whether Ukraine 

really needs some money or not. I listened to a talk show this 

weekend, and they said there is not the urgency like there is in 

Israel. I think there is urgency on both, by the way. Could you talk 

to me about, if we do not pass supplemental that includes Ukraine, 

how long Ukraine has before Putin becomes successful? 

Secretary AUSTIN. It is hard to put an exact timeline on how long 

it would take, Senator, but I can guarantee you that without our 

support, Putin will be successful. And while the Ukrainians have 

done amazing work with our help in terms of the things that we 

provided them, if we pull the rug out from under them now, Putin 

will only get stronger, and he will be successful in doing what he 

wants to do in acquiring his neighbor’s sovereign territory. 

Senator TESTER. I would just hope that this committee shows the 

leadership that I know we have, sitting on both sides of the dais, 

to do the right thing here, and get a supplemental out that works 

for our national security. Thank you, Madam Chair. 

Chair MURRAY. Senator Hoeven. 

Senator HOEVEN. Thank you, Madam Chair. We need to support 

Israel. There is no question about it. They are fighting for their 

very existence. We see that, and we need to—clearly, we need to 

help them and support them, not just in this package, but beyond 

that. I believe we also need to support Ukraine. 

When you look at history, we understand very clearly that tyrants, like Putin, do not stop. They have to be stopped. So we need 

to do those things, but we also need to secure the homeland, and 

that means securing our border. And there is about $14 billion, 

$13.6 billion in this package requested relative to the border and 

immigration. 
29 

Secretary Blinken, last month, 270,000 illegal encounters, of people trying to cross illegally at the southern border. That is a record, 

21⁄2 million last year, and 169 individuals trying to cross that are 

on the terrorist watch list. Border security is national security, and 

I am trying to understand how $14 billion to house, transport, and 

provide other services to individuals coming here illegally, won’t 

just encourage more to come? 

So my question to you is how is it that you are going to assure 

us here today, and will ask Secretary Mayorkas in a week, that you 

are going to secure the southern border? Because I think for a lot 

of folks, when we are talking about national security, they want to 

see how that is going to happen. And we are going to want to be 

assured of that. How are you going to assure us that this is going 

to actually happen? That it is not $14 billion for more people to 

come here illegally? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you, Senator. First, I think it is important to put this in very brief perspective which is we are facing 

a migration challenge around the world of historic proportions. We 

have got more people on the move, displaced from their homes 

around the world than ever before. Ever since we have been actually keeping the numbers on this, more than 100 million people in 

our own hemisphere, it is somewhere between 20 and 25 million 

people. And it used to be that we would have one crisis at a time. 

It might be Cuba. It might be Haiti. Now we have got Cuba, Haiti, 

Venezuela, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Ecuador, Columbia, 

and so on down the list, Nicaragua. And then people coming to our 

hemisphere from outside the hemisphere trying to get into the 

United States. 

My piece of this—our piece of this at the State Department is the 

work that we are doing with countries throughout our hemisphere, 

for them to step up and take shared responsibility for this problem. 

And that means among many other things, making sure that they 

themselves have asylum assistance that works for the people of 

the—— 

Senator HOEVEN. With all due respect, Secretary, we understand 

that. How are you going to assure us that you are going to stop 

the flow of illegal crossings at our southern border? Will you give 

us that assurance, and will you quantify it? 

Secretary BLINKEN. We are working comprehensively—— 

Senator HOEVEN. Not just talking about the problem. Will you 

give us the assurance, and will you quantify it? 

Secretary BLINKEN. I would certainly defer to my colleagues at 

DHS and others who are working on the border itself. The piece 

that I am focused on is working with other countries in the region 

reduce the flow—— 

Senator HOEVEN. Is it your opinion we should enforce third 

safe—I am sorry, sir. 

Secretary BLINKEN. I am sorry. Go ahead. Go ahead, Senator. 

Senator HOEVEN. Yeah. My time is limited here. Should we enforce third safe country and remain in Mexico protocols? 

Secretary BLINKEN. We should work with other countries and enforce every reasonable measure to make sure that the migratory 

flow is safe, orderly, and humane. That is what we are working on. 
30 

Senator HOEVEN. Secretary Austin, we have had more than 25 

attacks in the Middle East on our troops just since October 7th. 

Why are we not striking back more forcefully? Why are we not delivering a resounding message to stop those strikes on our bases 

and on our troops? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Thanks Senator. As I said, the protection of 

our troops, the safety of our troops is very, very important to me 

and the President. And we maintain the right to respond at a place 

and time of our choosing. And we have said that, and we are serious about that. 

Senator HOEVEN. So we are to understand that we will strike 

back sufficiently, forcefully to stop these attacks? 

Secretary AUSTIN. We will do what is necessary to protect our 

troops and deter this kind of behavior. 

Senator HOEVEN. One follow-up question. Senator Moran asked 

about a strategy with Ukraine that brings this war to a successful 

conclusion. What is that strategy? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Well, from our standpoint, want to make sure 

that Ukraine, at the end of the day, is a democratic, independent, 

sovereign country that can defend its territory and deter aggression. We also want to make sure that we keep NATO together, and 

I think the team has done an incredible job in making sure that 

we bring our allies and partners along. 

In terms of specific goals and objectives, you know, I would defer 

to the Ukrainian leadership to define that. But again, our goal is 

to make sure that we are providing the support to Ukraine to do 

what it needs to defend its territory. 

Senator HOEVEN. We need to know that we have a strategy as 

part of this funding. I think it is very important in terms of building support for the funding for Ukraine. Thank you to you both. I 

appreciate it. 

Chair MURRAY. Senator Shaheen. 

Senator SHAHEEN. Thank you Madam Chair, and Vice Chair for 

this hearing. And thank you to Secretary Blinken and Secretary 

Austin for being here at this really critical time throughout the 

world. Senator Graham and Senator Moran to some extent, both 

made the case for Hamas—for Iran funding Hamas, and Iran’s malign activities across the Middle East, but can you also talk about 

why funding Ukraine aid is important to degrade Iran’s activities 

as well? 

Secretary Austin or Blinken? 

Secretary AUSTIN. As you know Senator, we have seen Iran provide munitions and drones to Russia, and Russia has used those 

capabilities to attack the Ukrainian infrastructure, attack civilians, 

and towns, and villages across the land. And so I think, you know, 

making sure that we are dialing back some of the capability—they 

are connected, so I think it will have an impact on what Iran is 

doing for Russia as well. 

Secretary BLINKEN. And Senator, I would only add that it is a 

two-way street. It is both the assistance that Iran is providing to 

Russia for use in Ukraine to further its aggression, but it is also 

increasingly technology that Russia is providing to Iran to make its 

own inventory more sophisticated that could and will almost certainly be used either against Israel or for that matter, potentially 
31 

against us, against our forces, against our personnel, either directly 

or via Iranian proxies that are in the region. 

So this relationship, this two-way relationship is one of increasing concern to us, and one that we have to be acting against resolutely in both theaters, because they are closely linked. 

Senator SHAHEEN. I agree. I think it is very important for us to 

remind people that degrading Iran and their capabilities means not 

just supporting Israel, but it means supporting Ukraine as well. 

Last week I chaired a hearing of the European subcommittee on 

the Black Sea security. I think one of the things we have learned 

from this war in Ukraine is how important the Black Sea region 

is to so much of the world, and the fact that Ukraine actually literally—Ukraine’s grain exports literally feed the world. So can you 

speak to the interconnectedness between the world’s food security 

and Russia’s war against Ukraine, and why that is very important? 

And what is going to happen if we are not able to continue to open 

up those grain corridors and provide the food that so many desperate nations and peoples need? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Senator, one of the many terrible consequences of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine is the impact 

that it has had, far and wide, well beyond Ukraine, well beyond 

Europe, on people around the world, no more so than when it 

comes to food security. We all know that Ukraine has been the, or 

certainly one of the breadbaskets of the world. Its export of wheat, 

of grain, of other food products is essential to people in Africa, 

many other continents, both in terms of the supply of food and also 

the price of food. 

And in interrupting, in stopping the export of foods, and food 

products from Ukraine, particularly through the Black Sea, Russia 

has had a devastating impact on food security for people around 

the world. This never should have been necessary in the first place, 

the Black Sea Grain Initiative, because Russia never should have 

invaded Ukraine. And then once it did, it never should have blockaded Ukraine’s ports and prevented it from exporting. 

But an arrangement was made, as you know very well led by the 

United Nations and Turkey to get an arrangement by which these 

products could be exported. And while that agreement was in force, 

while the Russians were respecting it, allowing it to go forward, 

some 30 million metric tons of wheat and grain were exported the 

equivalent of 18 billion loaves of bread. That is what was at stake. 

That is what has been now stopped by Russia refusing to allow 

that initiative to go forward. 

So we have been working with the Ukrainians, Europeans have 

been working with the Ukrainians to find other ways of getting 

these products out of Ukraine and to world markets, but nothing 

fully substitutes for the Black Sea. It is why you are so right to 

focus on it. And by the way, last thing I will say is we have, as 

a result of a lot of good work that has been done, and very good 

input from you and from others, a refined Black Sea strategy that 

we are also sharing with our allies and partners. I think this will 

be an important subject at the next NATO Summit that we will be 

hosting here in Washington. 

Senator SHAHEEN. Thank you. And I am almost out of time. But 

I do want to ask you about the suggestion that is being floated that 
32 

humanitarian aid is going to go through the UN, and the UN is 

going to take some funding off of that in ways that support the UN, 

and do not support the end goal of that aid. So can you just point 

out why that is not correct? 

Secretary BLINKEN. First of all, that is just quite literally and 

practically not the way it works. The Security Council is not involved in these—either the decisions about how the aid is used or 

distributed. It is individual UN agencies. Some of the critical UN 

agencies that are involved in providing assistance like UNICEF, 

like the International Organization for Migration, like the World 

Food Program, happen to be led, right now, by Americans, in fact 

three American women. 

And so we have great confidence in the ability of these agencies 

do the critical work that they need to do, and to do it in a way that 

makes sure the assistance they are providing gets to the folks who 

need it, not folks who do not need it. 

Senator SHAHEEN. Thank you. 

Chair MURRAY. Senator Boozman. 

Senator BOOZMAN. Thank you, Madam Chair. And thank you all 

for being here. And I would like to talk a little bit about what I 

think is really the underpinning of our own defense security and 

our ability to provide aid to others, aid to our partners, and that 

is our procurement ability. It is not glamorous, but it really is so, 

so very important. 

I have learned a lot about it through working with Senator Murray on our military construction efforts, but also Camden in Arkansas is a major player in that space, and they are working really 

hard. The people of Arkansas, the people of Camden have really 

stepped up. 

Secretary Austin, 2 years ago in the fiscal year ’23 DOD budget 

hearing, I asked you about possible ways we could strengthen our 

industrial base to ensure we meet the current day demands and replenish our stockpiles. Since then, from your perspective, how has 

the industry responded? How is it performing? Are we making the 

right adjustments and doing so fast enough? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Well thanks, Senator. I will begin by saying 

that I am committed to making—continuing to do the right things 

to make sure that we are working with industry to expand capacity 

where appropriate. We engaged in an industry early on as this conflict in Ukraine started, and for the most part—well, in all cases, 

the leaders of industry were very, very helpful, very willing to increase production, increase capacity. And so we have some good examples of that great work. 

In terms of whether or not it is fast enough, if you are me, it can 

never be fast enough. If you are a Ukrainian, you can never get it 

there fast enough. But there are some limitations in terms of how 

quickly they can do certain things. There will continue to be workforce challenges, and when you expand capacity, you know, there 

is this—I mean, there is this issue of the time that it takes to build 

the capacity, and then make sure that the lines are running 

smoothly. 

Now, what they have done in a lot of cases to meet urgent needs 

is double and triple shifts so that they can, you know, in some 

cases crank out the munitions and weapons at a much greater 
33 

speed. So the corporation that we have enjoyed throughout, I think 

has been really, really good. And we are in contact with industry 

leadership nearly daily, and my Under for Acquisition and 

Sustainment is engaging on a daily basis, and I meet with them 

frequently. So they are doing the right things, they are being very, 

very helpful, but it can never move fast enough, to answer your 

question. 

Senator BOOZMAN. So with all the global demand now and then 

the possibilities of looking into the future, you know, with such an 

uncertain world, we have had this global demand for short range 

rocket motors, PAC–3 missiles, HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery 

Rocket System), Javelin, Stingers, 155 military artillery rounds. Do 

you feel that the request replenishes current stockpiles to an appropriate level while, simultaneously, fulfilling current day demands? Do you feel industry is able to meet the high request if 

needed? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I do. I think what we have in this request is 

the right amount. And I would say that we are going after capability as fast as industry can produce it. And so we have asked you 

for $3 billion as a part of this request to invest in helping to expand that capacity with industry. But it is a thing that we need 

to continue to work with. 

Senator BOOZMAN. So regarding the Israel portion of the supplemental, related to the Iron Dome request, the language is structured as a transfer to Israel. I am hearing from industry that they 

are currently lacking the investment to help quickly accelerate 

rocket motor production for the interceptor missile to meet the new 

increased demand. The Ukraine portion of the request includes language allowing appropriated dollars to support infrastructure investments to accelerate production, should we include similar language to support infrastructure investments to help meet the interceptor missile demands? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Senator, as a general rule, we are going to do 

everything that we can to meet the demands that we see in both 

Ukraine and Israel. As you know, this is the munition that you are 

addressing is a co-produced munition. 

Senator BOOZMAN. Right. 

Secretary AUSTIN. And so the American company that produces 

that munition is a company that I once worked for, so I will have 

to take that question for the record, rather than answer. 

Senator BOOZMAN. Thank you. I do not have time to address the 

question, but as Ranking Member on Agriculture, I am concerned 

about Russia using food as a weapon. So that is for what it is 

worth. Thank you. 

Secretary BLINKEN. I share that concern. 

Chair MURRAY. Senator Merkley. 

Senator MERKLEY. Thank you, Madam Chair, and welcome to 

both of you. 

Secretary Blinken, in your testimony you talked about the worsening humanitarian catastrophe, and how the humanitarian challenges are relevant to our deeply held principles, that every civilian 

life is equally worthy of protection, and that a failure on humanitarian relief could make the conflict more likely to spread. I was 

heartened to hear that Israel has agreed to facilitating 100 trucks 
34 

a day of aid in, but senior UN and humanitarian agencies, senior 

personnel, both, have said that Rafah crossing is not equipped for 

that type of logistical operation. And that the place where the 500 

trucks before came, was primarily through Kerem Shalom, which 

is also on the border with Egypt. But it is set up to facilitate large 

amounts of trucks getting through. 

Are we pushing to really solve, for Israel to solve the logistic 

problems so we can actually get—and 100 trucks, really, it is onefifth of what was supplying Gaza before. So that is really just the 

ultimate minimum, but much more is needed. Are we pushing to 

solve, have Israel solve those logistical problems quickly to get that 

humanitarian relief in? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you, Senator. We are looking at every 

means possible to get assistance into Gaza. I think one of the challenges we have, is while we fully agree that even 100 trucks, and 

we are still not there, and we want to get there as quickly as possible, is not going to fully meet the needs, there is also an absorptive capacity problem on the Gaza side given the conflict, given the 

horrific disruptions that we are seeing. 

So even if you could get trucks well above 100 going in, you need 

to have, on the receiving end, the capacity to actually both take 

and distribute that assistance. That is also lacking. So we have got 

to work on that too. 

Senator MERKLEY. Right. That is true, but are we pushing—I am 

just looking for a yes or no, to use the additional logistical capacity 

that is at Kerem Shalom? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Right now, our focus is on maximizing what 

we can do through Rafah, but even as we are doing that, we will 

look at other ways to get assistance in. 

Senator MERKLEY. Thank you. I am very concerned on the testimony of other experts that that is going to be very hard, and the 

moment is like right now, hunger rising, thirst rising, the potential 

for disease and conversations with Red Cross and others, huge, because of the contaminated water, possibility of cholera, et cetera. 

I am going to turn to an article by Thomas Friedman on October 

19th; he said, ‘‘If Israel rushes headlong into Gaza to destroy 

Hamas, and does so without expressing a commitment to seek a 

two-state solution with the Palestinian authority, and end Jewish 

settlements deep in the West Bank, will be marking a grave mistake, that will be devastating for Israeli interests and for American 

interests.’’ And he notes that the impacts include fanning the 

flames in the West Bank, a risk of a broader war with Hezbollah 

and Lebanon, eliminating the possibility of any coalition governing 

Gaza, after all this passes. Including whether it is Palestinian, 

Arab League, UN, NATO, so forth, and destroying the probability 

of normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia. 

That is quite a set of American interests. Do you share Thomas 

Friedman’s concern that without a vision of a two-state solution to 

address the prosperity, and thriving and Palestinian aspirations, 

that were locked into hostilities that will haunt us forever? 

Secretary BLINKEN. It has been the policy of this administration 

from day one to support and try to put in place the conditions to 

actually get to a two-state solution. We believe that is the only way 

to truly ensure Israel’s security as a Jewish and democratic state, 
35 

and to give Palestinians the state to which they are entitled. So we 

believe that that is essential. 

At the same time, we have been working very hard to both deepen and expand the process of normalization between Israel and its 

neighbors, both far and wide and these things not only—— 

Senator MERKLEY. Thank you. Also, one more question. I support 

the two-state solution, but I think the—— 

Secretary BLINKEN. Go ahead. 

Senator MERKLEY. Facts on the ground are making it more and 

more difficult. And I agree with Friedman’s analysis that policy has 

to change around settlements in order for that to be a possibility. 

I want to close with a question related to getting the Americans 

out, the families who are there. I have an Oregon family, they relayed to me how they three times gotten a text message, email saying, ‘‘Drop everything, go to the Rafah crossing.’’ They waited until 

dark each time, nothing happened. They were not interfered with 

by Hamas, just the gate never opened. 

NBC has reported on another family in Massachusetts, the 

Medway family, very, very—almost parallel experience. With the 

trucks coming in, why can’t at the same time we get those families, 

those American families who were lined up at the gate, having received notices from the United States to do so. Why can’t we get 

them out that gate? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Senator, as I mentioned earlier, this is something we are working on every single day. We want to get our fellow citizens out, and we are trying to find a way to do that. To date 

the impediment has been Hamas. And I regret very much that we 

have had occasions where we thought that we would be able to 

move forward, which is one of the reasons we were in contact with 

people and suggested that they get in place to do that, only to find 

that the necessary procedures that had to be put in place to actually make that work could not go forward, and Hamas has been the 

impediment to that. 

We continue to work on it. We are working on it with Egypt, we 

are working on it with Israel. We are looking for ways to get people 

out, but because Hamas controls what goes on, for the most part, 

inside of Gaza, unless it agrees, then it is going to be very difficult 

to get that done. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you. 

Chair MURRAY. Senator Moore Capito. 

Senator CAPITO. Thank you. Thank you both for being here 

today. I think it is a very important hearing. I want to thank the 

Chair and Vice Chair for the hearing. 

I remain an adamant supporter of our allies in Israel, and believe that we should continue to back Ukraine against Russian aggression. You both made that point very clear, but I do believe that 

you have also made clear the point and emphasized how intertwined Ukraine and Israel are important to our own national security, but in your own statement, Secretary Blinken, in your statement you mentioned one little throwaway line here when you say: 

That includes addressing the hemispheric challenge of irregular 

migration; I am assuming you are talking about our southern border here. 
36 

As has been reiterated, 269,000 last month, over 200 on the terror watch list. Americans are right to be extremely concerned about 

what is happening here and how it is intertwined with everything 

that is happening, globally, and we cannot lose sight of what we 

see. I am sure you, particularly Secretary Blinken, when you see 

the news of the anti-Semitic rallies that are occurring in our own 

country and across the globe, it is something I did not think we 

would ever see in our lifetime. And it is earth shattering. 

So can you make a better—will you please make a better case 

of why our own homeland security here, including our southern 

border, is figuring into the equations that you have brought us here 

today to talk about? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you very much, Senator. And I appreciate as well your reference to the, as you said, almost unimaginable instances of anti-Semitism that we have seen, as well, by the 

way, as expressions of Islamophobia, and other bigotry that unfortunately horrifically surfaces, particularly in times like these. 

With regard to migration, as I mentioned earlier, we have a 

genuinely historic challenge. We have a historic challenge in our 

own hemisphere with nearly 25 million people on the move. What 

we are working to do, from the perspective of the State Department, is to work closely with other countries to get them to assume 

their share of responsibility in dealing with this migration, and 

that means—and it is in the budget—— 

Senator CAPITO. With all due respect, it is not working. It is not 

working. 

Secretary BLINKEN. This is, as I said, a problem of truly historic 

proportions, requires a comprehensive effort that we are making. 

It also requires a lot of things including comprehensive immigration reform. The very first piece of legislation the President put before Congress would have done that. Unfortunately, it has not been 

addressed in the last three—— 

Senator CAPITO. Here is what I am concerned about, and I think 

a lot, when you see the 200 from the terrorist list, I know we are 

all concerned about this, that seeds of foment of terrorism could 

grow in all of—as you see the sort of seeds of unrest in our own 

country. As we are watching Ukraine and we are watching Israel, 

we do not want to take the eye off the ball of what is actually happening here. And I am sure that nobody here wants to see that. 

I am concerned. 

I would like to go to another question for Secretary Austin, much 

like my fellow Senator from Arkansas, we do manufacture a lot of 

the munitions at Allegheny Ballistics Laboratory in West Virginia 

where we have over 1,600 people working there, and this supplemental does help build up that industrial base, and industrial production at that facility, and other facilities across the country. I 

guess when we see where we are now, would you say that we have 

learned a lot about our munition requirements because of what has 

happened in Ukraine? Or would you say that these were issues 

that had been, I guess, focused on at the Department of Defense, 

but we had not really realized where we were until we have to replenish everything that we have given away or sold and to be able 

to get our own capacity up to where we want it to be. 
37 

Secretary AUSTIN. Thanks, Senator. I want to be clear about the 

fact that we will maintain—we have maintained and we will continue to maintain adequate capability to protect our interests and 

defend this country. And so as we have drawn down some of our 

stocks to provide capability to others, it is important to replenish 

that so that we continue to have—continue to maintain agility, and 

depth, so that we can respond to crisis like we have seen. 

But our ability to protect ourselves and protect our interests, we 

will never mortgage that. And we go through a process every week 

as we receive requests for assistance, and we measure what is 

being requested against what is required for our defense, and we 

make the right calls. 

In Ukraine’s case, there are some 50 countries, as you know, that 

are working with us to provide security assistance. Israel, their requirement—their fight is a different fight, and their requirements 

are a bit different, and so, you know, they are using different types 

of things so we are able to meet both requirements. And so again, 

there is an urgent need to get the supplemental so that we can continue to do the things that you mentioned in terms of replenishing 

those stocks that give us that flexibility going forward. 

Senator CAPITO. Thank you. 

Vice Chair COLLINS [presiding]. Senator Coons. 

Senator COONS. Thank you, Vice Chair Collins. And I will thank 

the Chair, in your absence. And our two important witnesses today, 

thank you for your timely and critical leadership in this hinge 

point in our role in the world and in human history. 

It is critical that we meet this moment and provide the full supplemental request presented to Congress by our President. And we 

have to sustain U.S. global leadership, and I would argue it is directly in our national security interests for us to stand up to tyrants and terrorists while meeting humanitarian needs to help stabilize critically impacted communities. 

The conflicts in Israel and in Ukraine are regional in nature, but 

they have global consequences. As the world questions whether the 

United States is a reliable, trustworthy ally, we have to fund our 

sustained presence in these fights. 

We have to see the global impact of a conflict like Ukraine that 

is having on global food security. We have to recognize we cannot 

just respond to Russian aggression in Europe while Russian proxies are spreading instability around the world in places like Africa, 

and addressing just the humanitarian needs in the Middle East by 

cutting responses in this hemisphere is not in our interests. We 

have to address these challenges comprehensively. 

Secretary Blinken, if I could, I just briefly want to ask you, humanitarian relief has long been bipartisan. There are some who are 

questioning whether we are spending too much, whether we are 

preventing diversion to terrorists, you have addressed that previously. I have been reassured to hear directly from Israeli representatives, they value humanitarian relief in the middle of this 

conflict. 

You are only asking for us to sustain our current year funding 

going forward and it will provide humanitarian relief across dozens 

of countries around the world that are facing threats of instability. 
38 

Could you speak to the strategic value of our continued humanitarian relief leadership? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you very much, Senator. And I appreciate the fact you have underscored that what we are looking at is 

to sustain what we have already been doing, and also making the 

point that, yes, this would be vital for Ukraine, it would be vital 

for people in Gaza, but also this would cover situations that we 

have to address in Sudan, in Afghanistan, Nagorno-Karabakh, and 

in other places. 

And I think, again, there are two things that are at stake here. 

One is, and I always lead with this because I think this really is 

who we are, is the imperative that America continue to be seen as 

the country that stands with those who desperately need assistance 

at the most critical time. And this goes to, I think, an impulse that 

most Americans feel, to help. But it is also a critical strategic proposition. 

I will give you one example. It is imperative that Hamas be defeated, and it is imperative that Hamas no longer posed the threat 

that it has posed so acutely to Israel, but there is military defeat, 

there is also ideological defeat, you cannot kill an idea no matter 

how perverted and distorted it is. You have to be able to offer a 

better alternative to people who are in desperate straits. 

Our ability, our willingness to be leading the effort to help them 

deal with the acute challenges they face in their lives, as well as 

offering a genuine vision for how life can be better is a vital strategic interest of ours. You are not going to—— 

Senator COONS. Another key piece of the support package, if I 

might, Mr. Secretary, is the non-lethal support to Ukraine. 

Secretary BLINKEN. That is right. 

Senator COONS. We are providing a significant amount, although 

our European partners are providing dramatically more. We are 

not just sending weapons we are sustaining Ukraine’s ability to 

have a robust economy and government. How critical to Ukraine’s 

sustained war effort and to Ukraine’s independence is this ongoing 

non-lethal budget support? I would be interested in hearing a brief 

response from both witnesses about it. 

Secretary BLINKEN. It is essential to Ukraine’s success and here 

is why. Russia is doing two things, it is trying to go at Ukraine on 

the battlefield, and as you have heard the Secretary say, Ukraine 

has had remarkable success. Again, thanks to so much support 

from Congress over the last year-and-a-half and getting back 50 

percent of the territory seized from it. And of course there is an ongoing intense battle now in the east and the south. 

But Russia is also going at what it sees as the soft underbelly 

of Ukraine, and that is, its electric grids, its ability to produce and 

export food, its basic infrastructure. This is another way by which, 

basically, Putin hopes to sap the will and defeat Ukraine. The assistance that we are providing to make sure that it can secure and 

provide energy for its own people, that it can sustain its agricultural system, that it can sustain its economy, and grow its economy 

to the point where it has got a rising tax base. It can pay increasingly for its own defense and deterrence. Those are absolutely essential to making sure that it succeeds in this war effort. 
39 

Senator COONS. I will summarize if I might. Secretary, if we only 

send weapons to Ukraine, but we fail to support their government 

and their economy, they will lose to Putin’s aggression nonetheless. 

Is that correct, Mr. Secretary? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I absolutely agree, Senator. 

Senator COONS. A closing quick point. There is $2 billion in this 

request for support for the Treasury Department to work with the 

IMF (International Monetary Fund) and the World Bank. It would 

unlock $50 billion in support. I hope my colleagues will look closely 

at the ways that that would allow us to support critical allies like 

Egypt, and Jordan, as well as other countries around the region 

and world that are facing instability because of the war in Ukraine. 

Thank you and thank you for the chance to be with you. 

Vice Chair COLLINS. Senator Kennedy. 

Senator KENNEDY. Secretary Austin. Is it not true that the world 

is on fire in Ukraine, the world is on fire in the Middle East, and 

that there are embers smoldering in the Indo-Pacific? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I would say that clearly there are challenges 

in both the places that you mentioned. Of course in the Indo-Pacific 

we see a China that is increasingly aggressive. 

Senator KENNEDY. Do you disagree with my statement? 

Secretary AUSTIN. That the world is on fire? I would describe it 

a bit differently. I agree with your premise that it is as challenging 

as the—— 

Senator KENNEDY. Is it not true—sorry to cut you off, but we 

only have limited time. Is it not true that China, Russia, and Iran 

have worked between and among themselves to either, start those 

fires, encourage those fires, or create those embers? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I would say that we see evidence of them 

growing closer together since the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine 

conflict. I would not—I did not see evidence of China collaborating 

with Russia to cause them to launch their invasion on its neighbor. 

Senator KENNEDY. Is it not true that China, Russia, and Iran 

would like to see Russia dominate Central and Eastern Europe? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I think China would like to see the United 

States be unsuccessful. They would like to see Russia continue to 

challenge us and keep us, you know, focused on that area so that 

we have less time and energy and resources to focus on our—— 

Senator KENNEDY. Well, the situation I just described, I appreciate you parsing your words, but the situation I just described 

would not disappoint China, Russia, or Iran would it? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I am certain that it would not. 

Senator KENNEDY. Okay. Is it not true that China, Russia, and 

Iran would like to see Iran dominate the Middle East? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I certainly believe that Iran would like to see 

Iran dominate the Middle East, but the—— 

Senator KENNEDY. Do you think that would break China’s heart 

or Russia’s heart to see Iran dominate the Middle East? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I do not think Russia or China would be unhappy about that, but—— 

Senator KENNEDY. Is it not true that China, Iran, and Russia 

would like to see China dominate the Indo-Pacific and be free to 

make moves in Sub-Sahara Africa and South America; is that not 

true? 
40 

Secretary AUSTIN. I think that is certainly China’s goal, to be the 

dominant player in the Indo-Pacific. 

Senator KENNEDY. And that is not a world safe for democracy is 

it? 

Secretary AUSTIN. It is not. It is one that would be controlled by 

autocrats, eventually, if they were to dominate the Indo-Pacific, 

and if Iran dominated activities in the region. 

Senator KENNEDY. And if we did not stop them——strike that. 

Do you believe that weakness invites the wolves? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I do. I think deterrence, in order to deter you 

have to show strength. 

Senator KENNEDY. And if we do not meet these challenges now, 

do you believe it will be more expensive in terms of America blood 

and treasure to meet them later? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I do. I do, Senator. 

Senator KENNEDY. And I have got one last question. Mr. Secretary, I am looking at your and the President’s proposed supplemental. What does $16 billion for childcare, $6.5 billion for the 

Federal Communications Commission to extend high-speed Internet, and $3.1 billion for the FCC to reimburse telecommunication 

companies to replace insecure equipment have to do with the world 

challenges we are facing right now? And why did you make this request? 

Secretary BLINKEN. I would defer to other colleagues on those 

specific aspects of the budget request. 

Senator KENNEDY. Do you support those? 

Secretary BLINKEN. I support the supplemental budget request. 

Senator KENNEDY. Okay. Last question, Mr. Secretary. I appreciate your candid answers, but why did the Department of Defense 

oppose my bill calling for a special inspector general in Ukraine so 

we could follow every penny of American taxpayer money? Given 

the fact that the Inspector General of the Department of Defense 

has never been able to audit his own Department? 

Secretary AUSTIN. The Inspector General of DOD has been involved in this effort from the very beginning. 

Senator KENNEDY. Oh, I know. Believe me. He opposed my bill, 

and I find that ironic because the Department of Defense is the 

only Federal agency that has never, in the history of ever, been audited. But your Inspector General insisted that he be in charge. Do 

you not see the irony there with respect to Ukraine? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Senator, I am confident that our Inspector 

General will do a great job in making sure that we remain on track 

with our responsibilities in Ukraine, in Ukraine and in Europe. 

Senator KENNEDY. Thank you, Madam Chair. 

Chair MURRAY [presiding]. Senator Schatz. 

Senator SCHATZ. Thank you, Chair and Vice Chair. Thank you, 

Secretaries, for being here. I do not think there is anyone on this 

dais who would disagree that we are in a fight against global fascism, and that what happened in Israel is Israel’s 9/11. It causes 

anguish, it causes outrage, and hopefully we can achieve some collective moral clarity about moving forward. 

But Secretary Austin, I want to ask you about the post-9/11 period in the United States. It seems to me that that collective anguish, and outrage, and moral clarity converted itself into some bad 
41 

strategic decisions that we are still dealing with in the region. And 

so my question for you is: What kind of strategic advice are you 

giving to your Israeli counterparts about avoiding the mistakes 

that we made in the past? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Thanks, Senator; great question. And I have 

had those conversations with my counterpart, and my advice to 

them—to him was to be thoughtful about, you know, actions, and 

objectives, and what they were trying to accomplish. And really 

think that through because if you do not, then the consequences 

can be long-lasting. And so we have shared that with them on a 

number of occasions, and hopefully that has made a difference. 

Senator SCHATZ. Do you think Israel has completed its strategic 

deliberations about what comes next? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I do not know for sure, Senator Schatz, if they 

have, because I am not privy to their internal cabinet discussions. 

But I certainly would say that from the very beginning I have encouraged them to think about what this looks like at the end of the 

day, what this transitions to. And really to begin to think through 

many of the things that Secretary Blinken mentioned earlier, because I think that is really important. If you do not, if you do not 

things to address the underlying causes of instability, then you create a bigger problem, or you have a lasting problem that, you 

know, will just go on forever and ever. 

Senator SCHATZ. Secretary Blinken, let us do a thought experiment. Hamas, at some point in the future is disabled, I think eliminating, it is a rhetorical flourish that puts us in a position where 

we will never stop fighting against some offshoot, some first-cousin 

of Hamas someplace on the planet. So let us stipulate that the objective is to disable them to the point where they cannot pose a 

threat. Who runs Gaza? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Well, I think we have two shoals, if you will. 

One is we cannot have a reversion of the status quo with Hamas 

running Gaza. We also cannot have, and the Israelis start with this 

proposition themselves, Israel running or controlling Gaza. That is 

not their intent. That is not what they want to do, and it is not 

something that would be supported. So in between those shoals are 

a variety of possible permutations that we are looking at very 

closely now, as are other countries. At some point—— 

Senator SCHATZ. And sometimes—— 

Secretary BLINKEN. Let me be more precise. 

Senator SCHATZ. Sure. 

Secretary BLINKEN. At some point, what would make the most 

sense would be for an effective and revitalized Palestinian authority to have governance and ultimately security responsibility for 

Gaza. Whether you can get there in one step is a big question that 

we have to look at. And if you cannot, then there are other temporary arrangements that may involve a number of other countries 

in the region, it may involve international agencies that would help 

provide for both security and governance. 

Ultimately though, beyond that is what we come back to, what 

this administration believes, which is the imperative of getting to 

two states for two peoples. That is where you finally get the kind 

of sustained security that the Jewish and Democratic State of 
42 

Israel needs and must have. And you also get the state that the 

Palestinians are entitled to. 

Senator SCHATZ. I think you are both being very thoughtful 

about this, I want to say that, but I think the worry that I have, 

and I have heard it around, bouncing around the halls of the Capitol, is that when we ask about what the end state is, what I have 

heard is: Well, we did not ask what the end state was in World 

War II, we just went ahead and fought the bad guys and let the— 

and let us sort it out later. 

I am not sure that is satisfactory in this instance. And I think 

the question of what the end state is ought to be wrestled with, at 

least simultaneously, and in an ideal situation, proceed the military strategy, because what are we even fighting towards if we do 

not know what the political objective is? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Senator, I think you are absolutely right. 

And just to reassure you somewhat, we are very much grappling 

with that. This is a very active, ongoing deliberation both within 

the government as well as with allies and partners including in the 

region. And everyone is focused on not only what is happening 

right now in Gaza, but exactly as you say, where this lands, where 

this goes. 

And in a way that fundamentally and materially changes two 

things. It changes the security for Israel, and changes the situation 

for Palestinians who have been living under, well before October 

7th, a Hamas regime that is, in so many ways, destroying their 

lives, misogynistic, repressive, and instead of spending the resources that it was getting to better the lives of Palestinians, 

spending them instead on building tunnels and building rockets so 

that it could attack Israel. 

We need to see a fundamental change in the circumstance of Palestinians living in Gaza, and we need to see a fundamental change, 

I think in the circumstance for Palestinians that gets to a State of 

their own. 

Senator SCHATZ. Thank you. 

Chair MURRAY. Senator Hyde-Smith. 

Senator HYDE-SMITH. Thank you, Madam Chairman, and thank 

you both for being here. We know how critical that this hearing has 

been. And I certainly appreciate your contributions. Iran has 

long—has a long and well documented history of being the primary 

funder of Hamas. Iran has supplied Hamas with the funds, arms, 

missiles, drones, and other equipment, as well as training and 

technical expertise. I find it extremely hard to believe that Hamas 

would have carried out its brutal attack on Israel without Iran’s 

knowledge. 

Secretary Austin, in the immediate aftermath of Hamas’ attack, 

the administration claimed it did not have evidence that Iran was 

involved. Is this still this administration’s position? 

Secretary AUSTIN. It is. And from the standpoint of, we did not 

see direct involvement in the planning or the decision to execute 

this, on the part of Iran. Having said that, the point that you made 

earlier, Senator, that they have funded, resourced, enabled, trained 

Hamas operatives means that they have a big part in this, but in 

terms of their actual participation in the planning and the decision 

to conduct this attack, we did not see evidence of that. 
43 

Senator HYDE-SMITH. Do you think they are the puppet master? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Well, I think they are—they certainly control 

a number of entities throughout the region, Shi’a Militia, Lebanese 

Hezbollah, and so that is what they do. They export mischief and 

use other people’s resources to carry that out. 

Senator HYDE-SMITH. And Iran continues to illegally sell more 

than 150 million in petroleum and petroleum products each day 

primarily to China. Iran uses these funds to support Hamas, 

Hezbollah, and other bad actors while oppressing the Iranian people. What more does this administration plan to do to curtail these 

sales? And I will direct that to you, Mr. Blinken. 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you very much, Senator. First, it is 

important to note that over the course of this administration we 

have sanctioned more than 400 Iranian individuals or entities for 

things like supporting Hamas, and that is something that continues to this very moment. We are very aggressively engaged in 

cracking down on financing and support for Hamas, wherever it is 

coming from, and including in, notably, Iran. 

We have also taken action against the so-called ‘‘ghost shipping’’ 

of oil and trying to cut off the proceeds from that, and going 

against different entities that are engaged in that kind of trafficking. And we have a very vigorous effort underway to make sure 

that, wherever we can, we are cutting off Iran from getting illegal 

proceeds that then turn around and go to finance terror, or go to 

finance its own activities. 

Senator HYDE-SMITH. And continuing with, following the Hamas attack, the administration stated that it froze the $6 billion in 

funds that were cleared for release to Iran in order to secure the 

release of Americans held hostage by Iran. Is this freeze permanent, and what mechanism is the United States using to freeze 

these funds? 

Secretary BLINKEN. So let us be very clear about this because it 

is important. I am afraid that some people have been misinformed 

and others may be misinforming about the $6 billion. These are 

funds that accrued from the sale of Iranian oil over many years to 

an account in South Korea that was established by the previous administration. The proceeds were to be used under our laws and 

under our sanctions for humanitarian purposes. Those have never 

been prohibited by our sanctions against Iran. 

And indeed, the previous administration set up a mechanism to 

enable any oil proceeds that Iran was getting to be channeled to 

accounts where they could be controlled and only used for humanitarian purposes. The money in that South Korean account that accrued from the sale of these proceeds, for technical reasons, related 

to Korean banks, was unable to be used even though it lawfully 

could be. So it was moved to an account in Qatar where it could 

be used for human humanitarian purposes, just as the previous administration established another account in another country, for 

these very purposes. 

The money never goes, and would never go to Iran. It can only 

be used for authorized transactions overseen by our Treasury Department, and only for things like food, medicine, and other authorized humanitarian purposes. To date, not a single dollar has been 

expended from that account. There are currently no plans to ex-
44 

pand a single dollar from that account, and in any event, that 

money never touches Iran directly. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. 

Senator Baldwin. 

Senator BALDWIN. Thank you, Madam Chair. And thank you, 

Secretary Blinken and Secretary Austin for your service always, 

but especially at this moment. You have both commented through 

your opening statements and through questions about the interconnectedness of the elements of this supplemental package, support for Israel in its fight against Hamas, support for Ukraine in 

its efforts to repel Putin’s invasion, support for humanitarian aid 

for displaced civilians, and those caught in the crossfire, a focus on 

our manufacturing sector and its workforce needs to ramp up production, among many other elements that this package has. 

You have also both answered questions about the urgency of congressional action, especially given the fact that House Republicans 

dropped funding for Ukraine from the current continuing resolution 

that is keeping Government running here in the United States. So 

against this backdrop, I was really taken aback to see calls in the 

House for dismantling this package and taking it up perhaps only 

one or two elements of the package. 

So in terms of urgency, President Zelenskyy told us, as Senator 

Durbin mentioned, when we met with him back in September that 

without our help Putin will prevail. And then again, that was followed by a pause in assistance during the current CR. So I just 

want to ask you, Secretary Austin, to tell this panel in no uncertain terms how urgent it is for us to pass this package, in its entirety, with respect to keeping Ukraine in this fight. 

Secretary AUSTIN. Thanks, Senator. I think it is absolutely urgent. As you may have heard me say at the very top, they are in 

a fight. This is not a notional thing. They are fighting to protect 

their sovereign territory, they are fighting for their existence, and 

our help has enabled them to do what they have done to date, and 

they have made credible progress. They have impressed the world 

with their bravery, with their professionalism, with their determination, and so their goal is to take back as much of their sovereign territory as possible, and I think, you know, we need to provide them the ability to continue to do that, and we need to do that 

urgently. 

Senator BALDWIN. Thank you. Secretary Blinken, I participated 

in the same briefing that Senator Merkley referenced earlier with 

the UN Relief and Works Agency, getting an update on the humanitarian situation in Gaza for those displaced, and literally, in the 

crossfire. Among the things we were hearing were just an assessment of what is happening in the hospital, the lack of medical supplies, anesthesia, things like that, and the dwindling, if any remains, in food stocks and storage. 

You have talked about our efforts to support increasing the number of supply trucks that are able to get in, but again, your own 

reflections that prior to October 7th and the terrorist attack on 

Israel, there were 5- to 800 trucks going in a day, and now we are 

at 50 to 60. How will this humanitarian aid package assist in our 

leadership in increasing that, and how urgent is it that we pass 

that part of the entire package? 
45 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you very much, Senator. Look, from 

my perspective and our perspective, it is beyond urgent, precisely 

for the reasons that you cite. And we are trying to ramp up now 

to a 100 trucks, and my hope is that will happen this week. And 

as you pointed, as I pointed out earlier, that is still well less than 

what was happening before October 7th. But as I also mentioned 

on the Gaza side, even if we could get 5- or 600 trucks, we have 

got an absorptive capacity challenge, in terms of the ability of folks 

on the ground, in Gaza, to actually receive the assistance, to distribute it, to use it effectively. So that also needs to be ramped up 

in the middle of a conflict, we are working on both ends to make 

that happen, but—— 

Chair MURRAY. Mr. Secretary, I do not want to interrupt you. 

But I have been informed that you need to leave at 12:30. We have 

several Senators here who have not had an opportunity to speak. 

I want to make sure we keep everybody’s time to 5 minutes so they 

have that opportunity. 

Secretary BLINKEN. In any event, yes, it is very urgent. Thank 

you. 

Chair MURRAY. Senator Hagerty. 

Senator HAGERTY. Thank you, Madam Chair. And welcome to 

both Secretaries. 

Secretary Blinken, I would like to start with you. I sent a letter 

last week to both yourself and to Administrator Powell asking for 

specific details on the funding that has gone into Gaza, the foreign 

assistance funding—U.S. taxpayer dollars, foreign assistance funding that has gone into Gaza, the recipients and the sub-recipients 

of that funding. Are you in a position to give me complete answers 

today to that? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you, Senator. Yes, we have got the 

letter. We are working on it. You asked important and very detailed questions. We need some time to make sure that we are giving you the most robust and accurate answers possible. So in short, 

we will get that back to you. 

Senator HAGERTY. At a high level, can you tell me the amount 

of funding, overall, under your watch, that has gone into Gaza? 

Secretary BLINKEN. So overall, we provided about a billion dollars in assistance to the Palestinians through the UN Works and 

Relief Agency. 

Senator HAGERTY. That is a significant amount of money. I look 

forward to going through the detailed response, when you provide 

it. 

Secretary BLINKEN. Yes. 

Senator HAGERTY. And I appreciate that commitment to do so in 

a timely fashion. I would like to tell you why I am asking this. I 

want to make certain that you can guarantee that not one dime of 

U.S. taxpayer funding is going to—the funding that is going to 

Gaza is going to benefit Hamas in their terrorist activities. Has 

that happened? And I think the question I would like to ask is can 

you guarantee us that no taxpayer money, no U.S. taxpayer money 

went to fund the attack that Hamas delivered in Israel on October 

the 7th? 

Secretary BLINKEN. So we have, and we have from day one, and 

we will obviously get back to you in response to this letter, a robust 
46 

monitoring inspection verification system for the assistance that 

goes to any international organization, and including—— 

Senator HAGERTY. Can you guarantee though that U.S. taxpayer 

dollars did not go to Hamas to help fund this attack on October the 

7th? 

Secretary BLINKEN. So everything that we are doing in terms of 

making sure that the assistance is used for purposes for which it 

is designated, not for other purposes, as I said, we have a robust 

system in place. 

Senator HAGERTY. Can I share my concern with this, Mr. Secretary, to be more specific about this. In May of 2021, I traveled 

to Israel after the Eleven-Day War. I met with Prime Minister 

Netanyahu with his National Security Advisor, they briefed me and 

my team, on the fact that every humanitarian aid dollar, every foreign aid dollar that goes into Gaza is controlled by Hamas. 

They either direct it, they tax it, or they divert it, they even take 

pipes intended for the water system for civilians and turn those 

into rockets that are aimed at Israel. We have seen Hamas’ own 

videos demonstrating this. So I want to come back and ask you, 

can you guarantee that U.S. taxpayer dollars were not used in October 7th attack? 

Secretary BLINKEN. What I can guarantee is that we take every 

possible precaution to ensure that these resources are not diverted. 

Second, we—— 

Senator HAGERTY. Let me come at it another way then, Mr. Secretary, because your own internal—your own State Department 

has made an internal assessment on this. 

Madam Chair, I would like to submit for the record a set of internal State Department emails from 2021 that were obtained via 

FOIA. 

Chair MURRAY. Without objection. 

[The information follows:] 
47 
48 
49 
50 
51 
52 
53 
54 
55 
56 
57 

Senator HAGERTY. And Secretary Blinken, I would like to specifically read from part of that the assessment of your own State Department in 2021 is that, quote, ‘‘Due to Hamas’ overall strength 

and level of control over Gaza, there is a high risk that Hamas 

could potentially derive indirect, unintentional benefit from U.S. 

assistance to Gaza.’’ 

Secretary Blinken, do you agree with this assessment? 

Secretary BLINKEN. I do. And here is the challenge that we face, 

Senator. We have in Gaza somewhere over 2 million people, the 

overwhelming majority of which, virtually everyone, not a member 

of Hamas, and indeed increasingly discussed—— 

Senator HAGERTY. I understand. I am talking about Hamas’ control over the funds, not the citizenship there and with respect—— 

Secretary BLINKEN. Well, no, but the support—— 
58 

Senator HAGERTY [continuing]. To their control of funds, can you 

guarantee that the U.S. is not funding both sides of this war, Mr. 

Secretary? 

Secretary BLINKEN. It is important that the one agency that has 

the ability to operate either directly or through agencies that it 

works with, and that we have robust controls in place to ensure 

that the money is used—— 

Senator HAGERTY. Let me come back to this, because I need to 

reclaim my time. I am losing it. Israel has said that Hamas is diverting foreign aid. Hamas has even demonstrated that with their 

own videos. Your own department has warned about the high risk, 

and I have yet to see, but I hope to, that where the actual funds 

flow is coming to Hamas from our Government to Gaza. 

Secretary BLINKEN. We would also—— 

Senator HAGERTY. And I am deeply concerned here. And we need 

to be convinced that we are not funding both sides of this war, that 

U.S. taxpayers are not put in a position of funding a vicious cycle. 

And I think this Department—I mean I think your Department 

needs to confirm that with this committee. We need that level of 

detail so that as we appropriate a massive request for funding, we 

can assess the risk ourselves, Mr. Secretary. 

Secretary BLINKEN. And Senator, we will work with you on that, 

and we will get you the information. I want to respond as robustly 

as we can to your letter. I also want to make sure that we are 

doing everything we possibly can for the 1 million children in Gaza 

who desperately need food, medicine, support—— 

Senator HAGERTY. I hear you. I just do not want to see the U.S. 

taxpayer funding both sides of this war in Israel and Hamas. 

Chair MURRAY. Mr. Secretary, and I hate to interrupt and I 

know you will respond to that, but we want to make sure we get 

to all the senators that are here. Senator Murphy. 

Senator MURPHY. Thank you Madam Chair. Secretary Blinken, 

Secretary Austin, we know you have been working around the clock 

to protect our friends in Israel and Ukraine. Thank you for your 

work. Thanks for being here. 

Secretary Blinken, I want to thank you. At the outset you described in really horrific detail what happened on October 7th. I 

think it is important that we be absolutely clear the nature of this 

brutal terrorist attack. And I share with you the real worry that 

in this country and around the world, the memory of October 7th, 

just a few weeks in our rear view mirror, has disappeared. it is incredibly important for us to remind the world about how our Nation was changed after September 11th, and how Israel has been 

changed as well by this, and how we have an obligation to stand 

up for them. 

Secretary Austin, I wanted to talk to you as Senator Schatz did 

about the lessons that we have learned in our counter-terrorism operations. I note a story from this weekend in The Washington Post 

entitled, ‘‘U.S. Urges Israel Against Gaza Ground Invasion, Pushes 

Surgical Campaign’’. I do not want to ask you about the confidential communications you have had with your Israeli counterparts, 

but one of the lessons that we have learned in our counterterrorism 

operations is that, not done well you can end up creating more ter-
59 

rorists than you kill, in particular when you are careless about civilian casualties. 

Those civilian casualties become terrorist fuel. They become bulletin board recruiting material for terrorist groups. And so there is 

a moral imperative to reduce civilian casualties, but there is also 

a strategic imperative. And so I want to ask you whether you have 

a worry that the nature of the Israeli ground operation, and the 

number of civilians that have been killed and will be killed could 

end up strengthening Hamas, or other affiliated anti-Israel terrorist groups in the long run? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I agree with everything that you said, Senator. 

And that is a key lesson that we learned in our—in the fights that 

we fought over the last 20 years or so. That the things that you 

do on a battlefield could, if you are not thoughtful about them, they 

could create a resistance to your effort that lasts for generations, 

and so there is an operational and strategic imperative to make 

sure that we are doing the right things as we outline our objectives, and prescribe our techniques about how we are going to go 

about this. So we have had those conversations for exactly the 

right—the reasons that you mentioned. 

Senator MURPHY. Secretary Austin, turning to Ukraine, I think 

the reason why many of us are so worried about splitting Ukraine 

aid and Israel aid is because there is an urgency, a real urgency 

in Ukraine right now. And we know that this place has trouble 

doing one difficult thing, never mind splitting it into two or three. 

I know that we are careful about talking about the urgency because 

we do not want to cause panic or damage morale in Ukraine, but 

I do think we have to be honest with the American people, and 

with this Senate about the consequences of not funding Ukraine. 

Admiral Rob Bauer of the Netherlands, who you know well, said 

that the bottom of the barrel is now visible. And so I just want to 

ask you a pointed question about ammunition. We are really getting to a point, very soon, where there are not bullets in the guns, 

and we need to be serious with our colleagues about the consequences for the rank and file soldiers in Ukraine, if we do not 

get this assistance soon. The need is dire, isn’t it? 

Secretary AUSTIN. It absolutely is, Senator. And again, this funds 

artillery munitions, small arms munitions, you name it, and they 

desperately need a constant supply of warfighting capability in 

order to be successful. You know, we would like to see them continue their operations through the winter. I think that is an imperative. They cannot do that if we have caused them to pause because there is a pause in the security assistance that we provide. 

Senator MURPHY. 30 seconds, Secretary Blinken, fuel into Gaza. 

Do we have a process to deliver fuel into Gaza that assures that 

it does not get diverted to Hamas? 

Secretary BLINKEN. We are working urgently on that. I will say 

two things very quickly about it. First, Hamas has its own supply, 

stockpile of fuel. If it cared a wit about the people of Gaza, it would 

make sure, itself, that it use that fuel to have the hospitals be able 

to operate, have the incubators stay turned on, et cetera. But of 

course it does not. And we have an obligation to do everything we 

can, if Hamas is not going to do it, to look out for people in Gaza. 
60 

So we are working on a mechanism that can get fuel to where 

it is needed, particularly to hospitals, bakeries, desalination plants, 

so the people can—— 

Chair MURRAY. Mr. Secretary, I am going to have to interrupt 

you because, again, you have informed us you need to leave, and 

I want to make sure as many Senators as possible have time. Senator Britt. 

Senator BRITT. Thank you so much Madam Chairman. I would 

like to start by telling you and the Vice Chair how much we appreciate you holding this hearing. It is critically important that we 

have the opportunity to ask tough questions, to get answers for the 

American people and to do our job. You allowing us to be here 

today will certainly make great strides towards that. 

Thank you both for being here before this committee. Before we 

start in on talking about some of the topics that we are here to talk 

about today, I want to make sure that we make a point on our border. So the National Defense Strategy of our Nation promises that, 

first, we will defend our homeland. 

In order to do that, we must secure our border when we are talking about the number of people here, and the number of countries. 

Secretary Blinken, I would like to add to the countries that you 

just said, we have people from Iran, people from Syria, people from 

Yemen, people from Jordan, people from Lebanon. We know the 

foothold that Iran has in so many of these nations. 

Now, these were the people that we have encountered at the border. There exists a problem that we have 1.7 million got-aways into 

this nation, where we do not know who they are, where they are 

going, or what their intentions are. As we see anti-Semitic behavior 

rise, not only across the oceans, but here in this Nation, we must 

do every single thing that we can to keep our homeland safe. And 

that starts with securing our border. 

When we look at what is happening in Israel and the atrocities, 

I want to thank both of you for going and putting boots on the 

ground immediately, telling our friends and greatest ally in the 

Middle East, Israel, that we stand shoulder-to-shoulder with them, 

particularly in the face of these barbaric atrocities that occurred on 

October 7th. 

Secretary Blinken, thank you for what you just said. Talking 

about what actually happened. I hope that every media outlet plays 

what you testified to earlier, and that is that we have seen men 

with their eyeballs gouged out. We saw children watch their parents be executed. We saw families at their breakfast table be tortured and murdered. 

This must stop. And in order for people in this Israel to be able 

to tuck their children in at night, and people across this globe, we 

must eradicate Hamas. In doing so, we have got to take the threat 

of Iran seriously and what they have been doing across the globe, 

what they have been funding, who they have been training. 

You said earlier, Secretary Blinken, you agreed with Senator 

Graham that the normalization efforts with Saudi and Israel, that 

that was one of the links in the chain that led us to where we are 

today. My question for you is, do you agree that the strategy of 

what I would call, appeasement, from this administration that occurred starting with the Obama administration, now to here, when 
61 

it is easing off of sanctions, even offering to enter back in into talks 

about the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action), that that 

type of behavior also contributed to where we are today? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you, Senator. It will not surprise you 

that I would not agree with that statement, even though I agree 

with pretty much everything you said right up to that statement. 

And again, I just point out that when it comes to Iran, two things 

very quickly, one—— 

Senator BRITT. Go ahead. And I know I have a limited time. 

Secretary BLINKEN. Very quickly, we have been engaged in going 

at Iran for its support in a whole variety of ways for malicious activities throughout the region, including support for terrorism, including destabilization, that has involved, as I said, sanctioning 

more than 400 Iranian entities and individuals, over the last twoand-a-half years. 

Senator BRITT. And not to cut you off, but I know that she is 

going to cut me off. 

Secretary BLINKEN. Go ahead, please. 

Senator BRITT. So you know, in order to actually do this, we have 

to go back to a strategy of maximum pressure, I hope you will work 

with your other countries here in G7 to actually do that. Can you 

commit today that this administration will not resume talks to 

enter in with Iran to enter the JCPOA? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Well, I am not going to get into hypotheticals 

about our diplomacy. I can simply say that it was a big mistake 

to walk away from the JCPOA, because at least it took one problem 

off the table, which was Iran’s nuclear program. Unfortunately, 

since we have moved out, Iran has turned that back on. And so 

that just adds to the threat that Iran poses. 

Senator BRITT. Obviously, we are going to disagree—we are going 

to disagree on that—— 

Secretary BLINKEN. Being able to deal with one—with at least 

one problem was a positive. 

Senator BRITT. So we have one more minute. Secretary Austin, 

when we are looking at what is happening across the Middle East 

there, particularly with attacks on our troops, do you believe that 

Iran understands—we more recently heard this administration say 

that there is a red line. Do you believe that Iran understands what 

that red line is? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Senator Britt, we have been clear that the protection of our troops is important, and we will do what is necessary 

to protect them. And this activity has to change. If it does not 

change, we will respond. And again, we will respond at a time and 

place of our choosing. 

Senator BRITT. At a time of our choosing. Yes, and I just want 

to make sure that we have—have we been clear with Iran what 

that red line is? Do they understand that? 

Secretary AUSTIN. We have been clear about what I just said, 

Senator Britt. 

Senator BRITT. Okay. Thank you. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. 

Senator Manchin. 

Senator MANCHIN. Thank you very much, Madam Chairman. 

And thanks both of you all. It has been very enlightening, and it 
62 

has been very interesting hearing you all’s approach on this. First 

of all, we know that Ukraine cannot succeed without U.S. support. 

Can Israel succeed without U.S. support? Yes or no, very quickly 

on that, either one. 

Secretary AUSTIN. That is correct. My assessment is that if the 

United States does not continue to support Ukraine that they will 

not succeed. 

Senator MANCHIN. Right, but can Israel without our support? 

Secretary AUSTIN. That is right. 

Senator MANCHIN. Can Israel make it without our support? 

Secretary AUSTIN. I think—no, I think we have to continue to 

support them, as they try to—— 

Senator MANCHIN. I am just asking you questions that people are 

asking me. So they are saying we have been giving $3 billion and 

Israel is very advanced. Ukraine was not, we had to bring them up 

to speed, to be able to fight the fight, and we are committed there. 

And Secretary Blinken? 

Secretary BLINKEN. I would simply say that on the one hand, 

Israel prides itself in being able to defend itself by itself. But a critical function of its ability to do that is the support that we provide, 

including through the Memorandum of Understanding that was negotiated by the Obama administration to give Israel a level of—— 

Senator MANCHIN. So it is just as far as support, the support is 

not only justified but needed. You are saying it would be hard to 

take on all the fronts, or taking on without our support. Next of 

all, it brings me to the munitions, I know has been asked about 

what we can produce; is the United States running a risk, maybe, 

not having enough to defend our self if we are pulled into any of 

these battles because of what we are basically producing? 

Are we producing enough here, with the trusted allies in our self, 

producing enough ammunition to defend our own homeland and 

help our allies too? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Thanks, Senator. The first order of business 

for us is to make sure that we have the capability required to defend our Nation, and protect our interests. 

Senator MANCHIN. Thank you. 

Secretary AUSTIN. And then above and beyond that we can—— 

Senator MANCHIN. Do you think we are producing enough? We 

are ramping up. I know we are trying to. 

Secretary AUSTIN. Yes. We are ramping up, but it was—if we had 

if we had to only resource ourselves, yes, but we are at a point in 

time where we are resourcing allies and partners like Ukraine and 

Israel, and it is going to require more—— 

Senator MANCHIN. I am just asking the question because people 

are asking me. Are we running our self critically low on our own 

volume of what we need in our own, basically inventory? Or are we 

basically overproducing, or can we produce enough, or are we supplying more than what we can produce to backfill? That was a 

question. 

The other thing that has been asked of me, first of all, our commitment to win, our track record has not been too good with Vietnam, and basically Afghanistan, Ukraine, getting out—the end result. Are we committed to staying with this to win? Because I believe Ukraine is the most—I just think it is the purpose and the 
63 

most honorable position we have ever taken in my lifetime of seeing that we were committed to playing the role the United States 

plays as defender of freedom and liberties. And when you have a 

country willing to risk their own life and put their own people on 

the line; that is the least we can do to support them. So I am all 

in on that. But are we committed to staying the stay all the way 

through? 

And next of all, on our support to Israel; Israel has got to take 

out Hamas. Israel has to be supported to do that. And with that, 

are we committed to make sure that happens? So I think at least, 

and in this final question, people have asked me saying why 

can’t—are the people in—the Palestinian people in Gaza, are they 

committed to the cause, to Hamas’ cause, basically? And that is 

why they are not leaving when we have—basically been warned 

that you should leave? That they are being held hostage by 

Hamas? Can we not get aid to them making sure it is being used 

for the purpose of their survivability? And can we not get them out 

of there? What is holding that back? Secretary Blinken. 

Secretary AUSTIN. We are committed to making sure that 

Ukraine has what it needs to be—to defend its sovereign territory. 

That is why we are here asking you for support. 

Senator MANCHIN. No problem. But I am just saying, is there a 

way to do that? Secretary Blinken, I know you have been over 

there quite a bit. Both of you all have been, and appreciate it. 

Secretary BLINKEN. Senator, very quickly the overwhelming majority of Palestinians living in Gaza are not part of Hamas, do not 

support Hamas. In fact, are subjected to its repressive rule. But 

these are impoverished people who have virtually no opportunity, 

and so no ability—— 

Senator MANCHIN. You are saying nowhere to go? 

Secretary BLINKEN [continuing]. So very hard for them to move 

out of the way, although obviously we are working on that to try 

to get them out of harm’s way, very little ability to provide for 

themselves, which is why we are trying to get assistance in. But 

ultimately, this is their land, we do not want to see them displaced—— 

Senator MANCHIN. Very quickly—— 

Secretary BLINKEN [continuing]. And we do want to see different 

governance in Gaza. 

Senator MANCHIN. The problem that we have, basically we are 

saying that $10 billion for humanitarian aid, when we know we 

cannot even get the aid that we are putting in there now, going 

into the hands—— 

Secretary BLINKEN. No. No. We can—no, we can, and we are. We 

are making sure that the assistance going in is going to the people 

who need it and deserve it, not the people who do not. 

Chair MURRAY. Mr. Secretary, I am going to—— 

Senator MANCHIN. My final—— 

Chair MURRAY. I am going to interrupt you. I apologize to everyone. 

Senator MANCHIN. I know. 

Chair MURRAY. Secretary Blinken has said he has to leave. I respect that. And Senator Austin—or Secretary Austin said he would 

stay. We have four Senators who have not—— 
64 

Senator MANCHIN. Let me just—I just had—— 

Chair MURRAY [continuing]. Who have not had a chance to ask 

anything: Senators Rubio, Van Hollen, Fischer, and Murkowski. If 

you will indulge me, I would like to ask each of those to ask, quickly, their question for Secretary Blinken to respond to those. 

Senator MANCHIN. Can I just have a final—— 

Chair MURRAY. And Secretary Austin will be here and stay here 

to answer, and those four, we will call back on you in—— 

Senator MANCHIN. I have one final comment I want to make to 

both of you all. This is a bipartisan, so when you hear all of the— 

my Republican colleagues saying about how important it is to secure our own borders, I want you to know it is bipartisan. I have 

got more concern about our own borders from my own people in 

West Virginia, and I want to make sure that you understand that 

we will do anything and everything humanly possible to support 

securing the borders of the United States of America. Thank you. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. I am going to call on Senator Rubio, 

Van Hollen, Fischer, and Murkowski to simply ask a question. Mr. 

Secretary, if you can respond to those together? And then I will call 

on all of you to ask Secretary Austin a question. 

Senator Rubio. 

Senator RUBIO. Well, since I only have one question, no one else 

is going to ask you about this, and it is unrelated to this matter, 

tangentially anyway. We recently did a deal with the Maduro Regime in Venezuela, in which we lifted sanctions in exchange for 

free and fair elections that they were supposed to comply with. It 

has taken them 2 weeks now. They have violated that. They canceled the opposition’s primary election; continue to ban their—the 

winner of that primary. They basically wiped out the election. They 

have broken the deal. Are we going to reimpose sanctions? 

Chair MURRAY. Senator Van Hollen, your question please. 

Senator VAN HOLLEN. Thank you, Madam Chair. Mr. Secretary, 

in the aftermath of the horror visited upon Israel by Hamas and 

the ongoing war in Gaza, much of the world has turned its eye 

away from what is happening on the West Bank. And what we are 

seeing, and our own folks on the ground have been reporting this 

on a daily basis, is that with support of extremists in the 

Netanyahu government, people like Smotrich and Ben-Gvir, extremist settler violence against Palestinians has skyrocketed, as 

more Palestinians are pushed off their land in Area C. 

As you know, all this does is strengthen Hamas, undermine the 

already weak PA, and open another front in this war. I know the 

President has raised this issue with Prime Minister Netanyahu, 

but according to every report I get, and I know both of you, Secretaries, get these. We have seen no improvement. So my question 

is pretty simple: What is your plan beyond urging that something 

be done when—or pleas continue to be ignored? 

Chair MURRAY. Senator Fischer, your question, please? 

Senator FISCHER. No question. 

Chair MURRAY. No question. 

Senator Murkowski. 

Senator MURKOWSKI. Given the overlay that we have heard, the 

interconnectedness between what is happening in Ukraine with 

Putin’s war, what we are seeing truly explode now in Israel by 
65 

Hamas with the support of Iran, given what we have all been discussing here, with regards to the tension in China and Taiwan. We 

are not talking about North Korea today, but we should always be 

thinking about North Korea’s intentions. 

This is a simple question that I was going to ask both of you. 

Given the situation, globally, and what is at play and how it all 

intersects. Are we at a time and a place where, from a national security perspective, we are as vulnerable as we have been as a nation, in your professional estimation? 

Chair MURRAY. Mr. Secretary, your responses, please? 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you. And I very much appreciate the 

accommodation. I want to try to quickly answer, at least address 

initially the questions that are raised before I leave. 

Senator Rubio, I thank you very much for the question about 

Venezuela. As you know, following the agreement that the Unitary 

Platform, the Opposition, reached with the Regime on a way forward toward elections, we wanted to support that and part of supporting that was to encourage that to move forward, including by 

lifting some sanctions with the ability, of course, to snap them 

back, or to put some licenses in place that can be revoked very 

quickly. 

If the regime has, in fact, violated the agreement that it reached, 

then of course we will take the necessary action. We have been 

very clear about that, they are not getting a free pass for actions 

that they take that are in contradiction to the commitments that 

they have made to move towards free and fair elections, which is 

a shared objective that we have with the Opposition, with the Unitary Platform. So we are tracking that very carefully and happy to 

come back to you further as this moves along. 

Senator Van Hollen, with regard to the West Bank, we very 

much share the concern that you have expressed. Palestinian authority is doing everything that it can to keep security, to keep stability in the West Bank. It is vastly under-resourced. This is another aspect of the problem and we have urge the Israelis, for example, to provide the authority with the resources that it needs 

that are being held back, tax revenues and other fees that it collects and then normally gives to the authority so that it can do its 

business, to release those. 

And at the same time, the President himself has been very clear, 

very direct, and very explicit about our concerns about extreme settler violence and the impact that that is having on the West Bank, 

including adding fuel to the fire. We have seen that people have 

been, in effect, forcibly displaced from their communities as well as 

killed, so this is something that we are in direct communication 

and conversation with the Israeli government at the very highest 

levels, and something we are tracking very carefully. 

Secretary AUSTIN. Tony, if I could add. 

Secretary BLINKEN. Please. 

Secretary AUSTIN. You know, I mentioned earlier, I talk to my 

counterpart nearly every day, and this is something that I bring up 

every time I talk to him. As you mentioned, Senator, I am watching these reports and some of the things that we are seeing are 

fairly disturbing, and it will work against them going forward if 

they do not make a decision to control this better. 
66 

Senator VAN HOLLEN. Thank. It really needs to stop. 

Secretary BLINKEN. And then, Senator Murkowski, I think I 

would say this, we see the challenges that we have been discussing 

today. You also mentioned North Korea. Another challenge that we 

take with dead seriousness, that is on one side of the equation. The 

other side of the equation is this, there has never been a time in 

my own experience where we have had greater unity of purpose, 

greater unity of action, greater convergence with our partners in 

Europe, our partners in Asia, and indeed in other parts of the 

world than we have now in facing exactly those problems. 

We built a coalition of more than 50 countries to help deal with 

the aggression that Putin is committing in Ukraine, an extraordinary coalition that is supporting Ukraine in so many different 

ways, as well as dealing with broader problems that Russia poses. 

At the same time, we built much greater convergence than I have 

ever seen on how to deal with and approach to the challenges posed 

by China. And we see that in Asia itself. We see that in our relationships with everyone from Korea to Japan, to the Philippines, to 

Vietnam, to India, countries wide and far, as well as in Europe. 

So I am very comforted by the fact that because we have revitalized, reenergized, reengaged our core alliances and partnerships, 

our greatest strength, and built new ones, and brought them together in new ways, we have tremendously effective groupings of 

countries that are prepared to deal with these challenges. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. And thank you. I understand you 

have a meeting with the Speaker. And appreciate your answering 

those questions. 

Secretary BLINKEN. Thank you, Madam Chair. 

Chair MURRAY. I will go back to the Senators who have not had 

a chance now. 

Secretary Austin, thank you for your willingness to stay and answer the final questions. 

Senator Rubio. 

Senator RUBIO. Thank you. Secretary Austin, I wanted to ask 

you, and really I will just be I guess very quick, in respect for all 

the people’s time here. These attacks from these, we continue to 

call them proxies, they are basically agents of the IRGC and the 

Iranians, they would not be occurring without the Iranians, not 

just permitting them, but frankly facilitating them. And the Iranians would not facilitate or permit them because in fact there was 

a pause in those attacks for some period of time. 

They would not facilitate or permit them unless they calculated 

that these attacks do not cross some threshold, in their mind that 

if they cross that threshold that would trigger a price, a response— 

a price they do not want to pay, a response they do not want to 

see. At this moment, I do not believe that we can argue that we 

have deterrence in place for these attacks. 

And this is more of a comment than it is a question, although 

you are obviously free to comment, and I think we are very interested to hear what your response will be, but it is my deep belief 

that I hope is shared by the Department, that if we do not—I do 

not want a broader war with Iran, none of us have talked about, 

and I am not one of those people who have out there been talking 
67 

about airstrikes and starting a war with Iran is a tinderbox to 

begin with. 

But if we do not have a credible, not just the deterrence, a credible deterrence with the Iranians, these attacks are going to escalate. They are going to come faster, they are going to spread beyond Syria and Iraq, and they will involve weaponry of increasing 

sophistication and lethality. And that is my biggest fear, is that we 

will find ourselves if we do not soon establish a credible deterrent, 

they will begin to cross lines that will require, not just a defensive 

posture on our front, but imposing a cost on them. 

One of the biggest, obviously I share all the comments that have 

been made here about the horrifying incident involving Hamas, 

and everything they have done in the past and moving forward, the 

need to stand with our allies, but I think this is the one that really, 

really—this is the one that has the threat to quickly spiral out of 

control, is that these groups escalating these attacks to include 

more places, at a faster clip, with more lethality and sophistication 

if we do not establish a credible deterrent quickly. 

Secretary AUSTIN. Senator, I agree with that if they are not convinced that we will do what is necessary to protect our troops, then 

they will continue on as they are. But I have been clear, the President has been clear that that is something that we will not tolerate. And we will do what is necessary to protect our troops. You 

saw me move another carrier battle group, actually it is in the Med 

now, it is headed to the Gulf region. That gives us more capability, 

more strike capability. We have additional aircraft in the region 

now, we have the punch that is necessary to protect our interest, 

and we are going to do what is necessary to do that. 

Senator RUBIO. Well, I have no question that we have the assets 

positioned in the region to impose a cost on Iran that they do not 

want to pay. I hope we never have to do it. I guess the fundamental question really becomes, do they believe we will actually do 

it. 

Again, I understand the complexity of the situation where something could trigger, and suddenly this thing begins to move in a direction that spirals out of control. What I have real concerns about 

is their perception of what we are willing to do, that may not 

match up with what we are actually willing to do. Hence, at this 

moment we do not have a credible deterrent. And I sense from your 

answer that you share that concern, sometimes even when we say 

things they may not believe us, even if we have the capability to 

do it. 

So it is one of those situations where we do not want there to 

be a shooting war, certainly, and seeing this thing escalate, but I 

think one of the things that guarantees escalation is the lack of a 

credible deterrent. It is a complex and serious matter, and one that 

I hope you—it sounds like you share my concern about it quickly 

spiraling here, primarily because of Iranian perceptions of our willingness, not our capability, but our willingness to take deterrent 

action. 

Chair MURRAY. Senator Van Hollen. 

Senator VAN HOLLEN. Thank you, Madam Chair. Secretary Austin, thank you for your service. And I agree that we have to provide 

the people of Ukraine with military assistance that they need to 
68 

defend themselves against Putin’s aggression. And President Biden 

is right to stand with Israel in its hour of need. All of us have been 

repulsed by the horror and brutality of the Hamas terror attacks 

that left over 1,400 innocent Israelis murdered, including women 

and children, including those massacred at Kibbutz Kfar Aza, 

which I visited in June. 

When scaled to the size of the U.S. population that is comparable 

to over 40,000 Americans killed; a horror that will never be erased. 

All of us agree that Israel not only has the right but the duty to 

defend itself and eliminate the threat from Hamas. Hamas must 

immediately release all the hostages, and as Israel conducts its operations, many of us believe it should prioritize returning the hostages safely home. 

Also, as President Biden has said, it must conduct its operations 

in accordance with the laws of war. Not only because taking all 

possible measures to avoid civilian casualties and human suffering 

is morally and legally required, but that it is also in the best strategic interests of the United States and Israel to do so. Something 

both you and Secretary Blinken have affirmed today. 

The President has been very clear about the need to distinguish 

between Hamas and the overwhelming number of Gaza’s over 

2,000,000 Palestinian civilians who have nothing to do with 

Hamas. But some members of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s coalition have indicated that all Palestinians in Gaza are responsible for 

the horror visited upon Israel. And Israel has imposed, as you 

know, a full siege on the people of Gaza, cutting off most water, 

food, medicine, electricity, and fuel shipments. 

Secretary Blinken described the desperate humanitarian situation in his testimony today, but to date, we have only seen a trickle, a trickle of the needed humanitarian aid crossing the Rafah border. I saw the readout from your conversation today with Minister 

Gallant where you indicated, and I quote, ‘‘That humanitarian law 

requires that there be unfettered humanitarian assistance.’’ 

So Mr. Secretary, simple question. We have got a trickle going. 

You would agree that in the interests of humanitarian law and 

helping innocent people in Gaza, we have to do a lot better? A simple question. 

Secretary AUSTIN. I agree, Senator, and as I said earlier, it is a 

moral, and operational, and strategic imperative. If you fail to do 

that, then I think we are going to create a problem that—they will 

create a problem, a bigger problem for themselves. 

Senator VAN HOLLEN. Now, the siege is being accompanied by a 

ferocious bombing campaign. In just the first six days of the war, 

Israel dropped 6,000 bombs in the densely populated the Gaza 

Strip. Israel has stopped reporting the number of bombs being 

dropped, but the intense pace has continued. Last night, my wife 

and I learned that someone we know well lost two family members, 

and four of their children killed in bombing in Gaza. 

So they are not yet included in the most recent death toll reported by the United Nations yesterday, which says the number of 

dead has risen to over 8,300 people, 70 percent of them women and 

children including 3,457 children, these are UN figures. According 

to UN figures, that is about six times more children killed in 3 
69 

weeks in Gaza than the number of children killed in Ukraine during the entire war there. 

And if you sail the death of those Palestinian children to the 

United States population it is comparable to over 230,000 American children killed. The executive director of UNICEF, Catherine 

Russell, said at the current rate, more than 420 children are being 

killed or injured in the Gaza each day. A number, she said, which 

should shake us to our core. I agree. 

Now, Mr. Secretary, I know that people are on opposing sides of 

this conflict provide different reasons for why the death toll is so 

high, and you are right about Hamas’ despicable practices of operating among civilians, but regardless of the explanation, we must 

not look away from these terrible facts. You and the President have 

repeatedly said that Israel must comply with the rules of war, but 

as we consider additional American military assistance to Israel’s 

fight in Gaza, don’t we have an obligation not only to state that expectation, but to ensure that our support is used in a manner that 

complies with the laws of war and U.S. law? That is my question, 

Mr. Secretary. 

Secretary AUSTIN. We will continue to emphasize to our allies 

here the necessity to account for the civilians that are in the battle 

space. They are a part of the battle space. They must account for 

them. They must do the right thing in terms of taking that into 

consideration as they do their targeting, they must create such—— 

Senator VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Secretary, with respect, my question 

is a little different. My question is now that we are talking 

about—— 

Chair MURRAY. Senator Van Hollen, I apologize. Secretary Austin has just a few minutes left. 

Senator VAN HOLLEN. All right. 

Chair MURRAY. We still have four Senators here. 

Senator VAN HOLLEN. All right. Just, additional assistance, don’t 

we now have an obligation, not just a stated expectation, for that 

to be the case? 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. 

Senator Fischer. 

Senator FISCHER. Thank you, Madam Chairman. While I appreciate Secretary Austin and Secretary Blinken testifying today, I 

will echo my colleagues’ sentiment and say that I am disappointed 

Secretary Mayorkas is not here. However, I am very, very pleased 

to hear that he will be before this committee next week. Because 

there is a national security crisis at our southern border, and this 

administration must make serious policy changes to address the 

crisis. I look forward to hearing from Secretary Mayorkas on how 

the administration intends to address that crisis. 

Twenty-four days ago, Israel suffered the worst terrorist attack 

in its history. Israel has the right and the responsibility to respond 

to these barbaric attacks. We can best help them by giving them 

the time and resources they need to eliminate Hamas. The atrocities committed by Hamas demand nothing less. The administration’s request included over $14 billion for Israel, including $5.2 billion to replenish their Iron Dome and David’s Sling systems and 

accelerate development of their Iron Beam system, and $3.5 billion 

in foreign military financing. I strongly support the full inclusion 
70 

of this request in the supplemental funding bill that this committee 

will draft. 

The administration has also requested significant funding for 

Ukraine. I would note that while many of our allies and partners 

are capable of providing generous humanitarian and economic assistance packages, only the United States can provide Ukraine with 

lethal aid at the scale that it needs. That is where we should focus 

our efforts as a country, but we can only continue to provide lethal 

aid if we aggressively expand our munitions production capacity. 

And we do that here at home. And that is a point that is being lost 

by many. 

A significant portion of the funding request is to replenish and 

build out U.S. capacity. The United States faces threats from 

around the world, from Russia, China, Iran. Earlier this month, the 

bipartisan bicameral Congressional Commission on the Strategic 

Posture of the United States released its final report on America’s 

Strategic Posture. 

The report unanimously endorsed by the Commissioners found 

that we will soon face a security situation that quote, ‘‘The United 

States did not anticipate, and for which it is not prepared.’’ I am 

working with my colleagues to turn many of the Commission’s recommendations into law, but fundamentally, we simply do not have 

the workforce, supply chain, or infrastructure necessary to meet 

the coming threats. Building out this capacity, it is going to take 

time and resources, but we can start now by making targeted investments in our munitions production base. The administration’s supplemental request includes over $18 bil- lion to replenish our own weapons stockpiles, and over $4.6 billion 

to expand production capacity for those critical munitions. This is 

a step in the right direction, and I will support its inclusion in the 

supplemental funding bill. 

Secretary Austin, what would be the impact of not including replenishment funding in the Appropriations package for this supplemental? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Thanks, Senator. We would lose the ability to 

do the kinds of things that we have done with Ukraine and Israel 

in support of our allies, you know, in a time of need. 

Senator FISCHER. And what does it do to our own national security? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Well, it certainly—as I said earlier, we will 

maintain the ability to defend this country and protect our interests, but this additional capability gives us the ability to address 

emerging crises. And so I think without that, we would be challenged to do the kinds of things that we have done here in the past. 

Senator FISCHER. You know, I know it is important that we continue to do that for our allies and partners, but it helps our own 

stockpile requirements, and that includes expanding the production 

lines for long-range precision-guided munitions as well; is that correct? 

Secretary AUSTIN. That is absolutely correct, Senator, and you 

know that—— 

Senator FISCHER. Which we need for the Pacific, right? 

Secretary AUSTIN. That is right. And you know that some of 

these munitions are long-lead time in terms of what it takes to 
71 

produce them. And so we are looking at ways to shorten some of 

those time lines, to increase capacity, to automate the production 

lines to address some of the issues that you raised earlier. 

Senator FISCHER. Thank you, sir. Thank you, Madam Chair. 

Chair MURRAY. Senator Peters. 

Senator PETERS. Thank you, Madam Chair. And as Chairman of 

the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, I know 

how important it is for us to secure our northern and southern border and provide law enforcement with the resources that they are 

going to need to complete that mission. And that is why I am very 

pleased to see substantial funding in the supplemental to support 

border operations as well as security for our country. 

But I also believe we cannot stop there. We also must work with 

international partners to understand some of the root causes of the 

increased migration that we are seeing show up at our border, and 

commit adequate resources to addressing those challenges. 

I know Secretary Blinken had another engagement that he had 

to leave, but I have a number of questions for him that I will be 

submitting to the record as to how that we work internationally to 

deal with border security here in our country. 

Secretary Austin, thank you for staying for additional time. You 

have been very generous with your time. The question is, with the 

recent escalation of violence and attacks that are aimed at U.S. 

personnel in the Middle East now, I remain concerned about the 

Air Force’s decision to divest the A–10 aircraft. Notably the DOD 

recently deployed A–10s to further deter Iran and their proxies 

that may seek to attack U.S. Forces, and in the process destabilize 

the region even more than it already is. 

As you know, my home State of Michigan is the home of 107th 

Fighter Squadron, a unit certainly capable of providing air support 

to our troops and allies should they be called upon. And my question for you, Secretary, is that clearly the Department of Defense 

has recognized the need for this aircraft’s very unique capabilities, 

and are deploying those fighters right now in support of operations 

related to this contingency. 

So my question for you is: Is this current conflict causing the Department to reconsider A–10 divestment? Or at a minimum perhaps delaying some of those divestitures given the fact that there 

is a mission today, and will very likely continue at least in the foreseeable future? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Well, thanks, Senator. I have personally benefited from the capability of the A–10s, so I have great respect for 

the platform. And the A–10 will be with us for the near term. But 

I have asked you for $61.1 billion in my fiscal year ’24 budget to 

invest in air power so that we can remain the dominant force. 

And so we are going to have to transition over time to address 

the new challenges that we will face with peer competition. And we 

are making an effort to do that. And we will have to make some 

choices down the road, but we are going to have to continue to 

make that transition, but they will be with us for the near term. 

Senator PETERS. Good. Well, as you talk about the future, certainly we have to be focused, and warfare is changing dramatically, 

but I believe that the very close working relationship and security 

cooperation that we have with Israel is incredibly important to that 
72 

task. The U.S. and Israel have some of the world’s most innovative 

technologies as you are well aware of. And now more than ever we 

need to continue to develop those. 

This Congress, I introduced along with bipartisan support from 

Senator Fischer, the U.S.-Israel Future of Warfare Act, which authorized $50 million to create the U.S.-Israel Future Warfare Research and Development Fund to increase collaboration in areas of 

artificial intelligence, drone, and cybersecurity, directed to energy 

and automation; that is a $50 million authorization. Given the current conflict, given the rapidly changing nature of warfare, how important is it that we make those investments, and should we be 

prepared to make even more investments, and may have an even 

closer cooperative agreement with Israel and the IDF? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Well, thanks, Senator. Thanks for your work. 

I certainly will not comment on pending legislation. What I will say 

though is that we are great partners. We have done a number of 

things together, and Israel, as you pointed out, is a source of innovation—excuse me. And our work together I think will continue to 

create advantages for us in the future battle space. So we look forward to that. 

Senator PETERS. Great. Thank you, Mr. Secretary. Thank you, 

Madam Chair. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. 

Senator Murkowski. 

Senator MURKOWSKI. Thank you, Madam Chairman. I think this 

is probably the most important and most significant hearing that 

we have had here in the Congress this year. This is not only about 

the United States and our national security, it is about food security. As we heard earlier, we have not really talked about energy 

security, but there is a dynamic there as well. This is significant 

that this committee is weighing in to evaluate the supplemental request. 

My hope is that we are able to take the contours of this, which 

is absolutely the imperative in the support for Ukraine. Absolutely 

the imperative in the support for Israel. Also recognizing that we 

need—we must do more when it comes to our own border here in 

this country. But also a piece that we have not really talked much 

about here today, and that is the Indo-Pacific piece. There is a 

small increment here or a smaller insignificant, in relative terms 

to the other areas, but recognizing that we will be doing some adjustment within those contours, those four pillars and how they 

intersect, and how they allow this proposal to move forward I think 

is so very, very important. 

I was reading something this morning, Madam Chairman, as I 

was coming in. It was a statement that said something to the effect 

that: In the United States we lead through the power of our example, but we also need the example of our power. And that example 

of our power is manifested through our defense appropriations. And 

so as we are talking about the need for replenishment of our own 

stocks, and then what that can do to help Ukraine, what we must 

do then to help Israel. 

Mr. Secretary, can you speak to the Indo-Pacific piece? There is 

$2 billion included for state—for foreign military financing. In your 
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view, why is it imperative that we also include in this package an 

increment for the Indo-Pacific? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Well, thanks, Senator. As you know from our 

strategy, our National Defense Strategy, China is our pacing challenge. And as we look at China’s behavior in the Indo-Pacific, we 

are increasingly concerned. So we must have the ability to continue 

to be able to deter China and to promote a free and open Indo-Pacific. And so we are going to continue that work. 

In this request we have asked you for $3.3 billion to invest in our 

submarine industrial base, and that will help us with our efforts 

with AUKUS. And as you know, AUKUS is a generational capability that I think will do great things in enabling us to promote 

security and stability in the Indo-Pacific. We have also asked for 

$3 billion or so—— 

Senator MURKOWSKI. Mr. Secretary? 

Secretary AUSTIN [continuing]. To build more capacity in our industrial base so we can produce greater quantities of munitions 

and weapons. And so I think that investment is going to apply to 

the Indo-Pacific as well. 

Senator MURKOWSKI. I appreciate that. Madam Chairman, a 

question has not yet been asked in this hearing about the impact, 

the implication of a long-term CR. I know we are talking about an 

emergency supplemental now, but our reality is in 18 short days. 

We will once again be beyond where our budget is. 

Mr. Secretary, if we were to go to a long-term CR, given the state 

of the world right now and the role that we play in it, what would 

that mean? 

Secretary AUSTIN. It would be—it would make things much more 

difficult for us, Senator. You know, you cannot buy back time. And 

this takes away the time we have to conduct—to effect new starts. 

The time that we have to go after specific projects, to invest in capabilities, and you just cannot buy that back. Our budget is directly linked to our strategy. And so if we do not have the full 

budget it is not—we are not able to execute the strategy to the degree that we planned it. And so I think this is critical and I think 

it is really, really important that we get an on-time appropriation 

if possible. 

Senator MURKOWSKI. Thank you, Madam Chair. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you very much. 

Senator Sinema. 

Senator SINEMA. Thank you, Chair Murray and to Vice Chair 

Collins, for holding this hearing today, and for our witnesses for 

joining us. This is my first hearing as a Member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and I am honored to further the Committee’s bipartisan work. 

The Senate Appropriations Committee serves as an example for 

the U.S. Senate and for the Congress for how lawmakers from both 

sides of the aisle can come together to advance priorities and further the values that unite us as Americans. And thanks to the 

leadership of the two Wonder Women who run our Committee, 

Chair Murray and Vice Chair Collins, the Senators who have crafted our Nation’s spending priorities while supporting important priorities for communities in our States. 
74 

I have been proud to work with each of them on a variety of bipartisan bills to help our country thrive, from our Infrastructure 

Law, to CHIPS (Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors) and Science, Bipartisan Safer Communities Law, and 

many more, what we have shown is that how possible it is when 

folks come together to solve challenges and create opportunities. 

And I could not be more excited and proud to continue that work 

as a Member of the Appropriations Committee, while addressing 

Arizona’s unique needs for our water future, our border security, 

defense, and housing affordability. 

And there could be no better time than now to show our Committee’s unity and Congress’ commitment to advancing our shared values. America’s adversaries are watching how we act and how we 

react, while actors across the globe that stand against everything 

we as Americans believe in actively trying to destabilize and destroy democracies. We must pass legislation to support Israel, 

Ukraine against Putin, and Arizona’s border. Each of these three 

are urgent concerns and should advance together as they are all 

critical for both my State and for our country’s national security. 

China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea are strengthening partnerships to undermine America’s interests and create chaos, while 

Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East, and Ukraine, a critical supporter of American’s values, continue to be attacked. 

At the same time, at home in Arizona, we know there is a clear 

crisis in our border, and cartels are using the porous border to 

smuggle migrants and dangerous drugs into our State, weakening 

our national security. So the supplemental request includes resources for Ukraine to fight against Putin, to support Israel in her 

time of need and border security all in one package. And I encourage my colleagues to join me in doing the bipartisan work that is 

necessary to address all of these priorities. 

Secretary Austin, the request includes additional appropriations 

for Iron Dome and David’s Sling replenishment. I agree we need 

to quickly surge production to support significant replenishment in 

Israel as soon as possible. Now, we have been talking about capacity shortfalls and revitalizing the defense industrial base for years. 

This request, however, only includes $200 million to mitigate industrial base constraints to allow for faster production of weapons 

and equipment. Can you speak to the impact of this funding in the 

context of supporting multiple conflicts? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Thanks, Senator. That $200 million that you 

are speaking of is focused on our DPA efforts. And the larger 

amount that we are asking for to invest in the industrial base is 

$3 billion. And so that is a component of the bigger number. And 

again, I think all the things that we are doing to replenish our 

stocks, to enable Ukraine to purchase new equipment from the 

United States, all those things also contribute. But we specifically 

asked for $3 billion in this request to focus on the industrial base. 

And again, that $200 million is a component of that, not the total 

amount. 

Senator SINEMA. So the request includes provisions for the ‘‘expansion’’ of facilities for the purpose of increasing production of 

critical munitions. How quickly will these investments lead to increased capacity? 
75 

Secretary AUSTIN. It will vary. In some cases, you know, industry 

can move fairly quickly. In other cases for more sophisticated items 

like Javelins and Stingers and those kinds of things, it will take 

a bit longer. But we are working with industry each and every day 

to do everything we can to send the right signals so that they can 

invest in the right things and be able to expand where required. 

So we have been supplying our Ukrainian allies with munitions 

to push back on Russian aggression for almost 2 years now. There 

are numerous reports that suggest that the manufacturing of those 

munitions and supplies is not yet keeping pace with demand, and 

that we are depleting our own stockpiles at a fairly significant rate. 

Of course, now we are going to send some of that inventory to 

Israel as well, which I am supportive of. 

But as we look to support Israel and Taiwan, in addition to 

Ukraine, against the aggression that all three of them face, are you 

worried that this could put too much trust on our inventory? And 

if so, can targeting software that improves the accuracy of our munitions help? And is that software investment reflected in the supplemental package? 

Secretary AUSTIN. Well, we have the most accurate and lethal 

weapons in the world, and in terms of our targeting, we are always 

looking for ways to do things better and more efficiently. But the 

specifics of those things, I will leave to my great airmen who, 

again, are the best in the world. In terms of the depletion of our 

stocks, again, as I have said a number of times here today, we will 

make sure that we maintain what is necessary to defend this country and protect our interests, and I will not change that direction 

of travel. 

Senator SINEMA. Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair. 

Chair MURRAY. Thank you. I want to thank all of our colleagues 

for a really thoughtful discussion. Secretary Austin, thank you for 

sharing your time and knowledge with us. 

You know, if there is one takeaway from this conversation today, 

it should be that these global challenges that we face, the war in 

Ukraine, terrorism in Israel, humanitarian needs for those who are 

caught in the conflict, and the posturing of the Chinese government 

in the Indo-Pacific region, these challenges may be distinct, but 

they are all connected, and they all are urgent. 

We have to respond to all of them in a comprehensive way that 

sends an unmistakable message to the world that American leadership is still strong and our resolve has not wavered. So I am going 

to make sure we take what we have learned today into account as 

we continue working together to craft a comprehensive security 

package that meets this pivotal moment, and lives up to our promises to stand by our allies, stand for democracy, and stand up for 

civilians. 

I hope all of our colleagues will continue to work with me and 

Vice Chair Collins to make sure we avoid insufficient half measures, and get all of our allies the robust support that they need. 

And of course, I do believe we need to continue to work to address 

our domestic priorities like the childcare crisis, situation at the border, and more. 
76 

ADDITIONAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS

That will end our hearing today. For any Senators who wish to 

ask additional questions, questions for the record will be due in 7 

days on Tuesday, November 7th at 5:00 p.m. The hearing record 

will also remain open until then for Members who do wish to submit additional materials for the record. 

[The following questions were not asked at the hearing, but were 

submitted to the Departments for response subsequent to the hearing:] 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED TO HON. ANTONY J. BLINKEN

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JEANNE SHAHEEN

Question. Secretary Blinken, I appreciate the steps that the Department of State 

has taken to address the passport backlog and shorten the wait times for people renewing or applying for passports. The supplemental appropriations request that 

Congress received from the Biden-Harris Administration includes transfer authorization to allow the State Department to use Consular revenue to address other 

funding needs in the region. How would drawing upon this transfer authority affect 

the State Department’s ability to address the passport backlog and quickly process 

new applications? 

Answer. Unforeseen emergencies may compel an urgent State Department response to protect life and safety. Congress previously authorized transfer of appropriations to the Emergencies in the Diplomatic and Consular Service account for 

such emergencies. The State Department is seeking comparable authority from the 

Consular and Border Security Program (CBSP) account. 

The Department has no immediate plans to implement such a transfer, but any 

such transfer would duly consider planned CBSP spending on passport and visa 

services and be subject to any applicable consultation and notification requirements. 

Question. If the transfer authority is authorized, how would the State Department 

ensure that Consular Affairs is able to continue to address the backlog in passport 

processing and maintain the resources necessary for full staffing at its processing 

centers? 

Answer. The State Department has no immediate plans to implement such a 

transfer. It is a risk management contingency for future emergencies, and any such 

transfer would duly consider and protect planned consular operations and service 

improvements. There is ample funding in FY 2024 to continue the Bureau of Consular Affairs’ (CA) aggressive hiring campaign. 

CA is also ramping up IT investments, particularly for Online Passport Renewal’s 

next phase. If needed, the transfer authority would draw from available 

carryforward and would not impact hiring, investments, and other consular operations. 

Question. How would the State Department monitor staffing levels to ensure adequate customer service for Americans? 

Answer. Staffing remains a top priority for the Bureau of Consular Affairs (CA). 

CA’s Consular and Border Security Program-funded domestic Civil Service and Foreign Service employment ceiling is currently set at 3,226. Each office and directorate 

in CA is allocated a set number of positions to fill with over a dozen recruitment 

options to choose from depending on position and need. 

Set allocations help us monitor staffing levels to ensure adequate customer service 

for U.S. citizens, and we continue to expand recruitment to build a robust and diverse pipeline to meet current and future demand. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JEFF MERKLEY

Question. Congressional Notifications: The supplemental includes $7.2 billion in Foreign Military Financing (FMF), of which $3.5 billion would go to Israel. This portion appears to waive the notification requirement for arms sales funded by this 

supplemental FMF for Israel. This would be an unprecedented removal of the requirements under the Arms Export Control Act (AECA) of 1976, which itself contains a mechanism for emergency cases. Can you explain the efficacy of exempting 

arms sales funded by the FMF portions of the supplemental from Congressional notification? Please elaborate on why the provisions in the AECA that permit an emergency notification waiving the notify-and-wait period for Congress are insufficient. 
77 

Answer. The provision does not waive the Congressional notification requirement 

for arms sales. The provision only impacts foreign military financing (FMF) and 

would allow the State Department, under extraordinary circumstances, to waive the 

requirement to notify that we are providing supplemental FMF to Israel’s account. 

This would mirror how we treat FMF to Israel in the regular base budget. A number of countries, including Israel, do not require notification for FMF because they 

receive the exact amount of funding included in the Congressional budget justification. 

Question. Israel Foreign Military Financing: The President’s supplemental request 

notes that ‘‘up to $3.5 billion may be available for the procurement in Israel of defense articles and defense services’’ for the purposes of Foreign Military Financing 

(FMF). Typically, only a portion—about 20% of FMF—has been allowed to be used 

this way for Israel. In this case, it appears to be the entire requested amount. 

Please confirm whether the entire $3.5 billion in FMF requested for Israel can be 

spent on Israeli defense articles. If so, how does that benefit U.S. interests and manufacturers? 

Answer. I anticipate the funding priority for supplemental foreign military financing will be replenishing consumables, which are being used in real time, to include 

spares for air-to-ground components and ammunition, most of which are produced 

in the United States. Most of Israel’s requests continue to be for U.S.-produced defense articles. However, the State Department has requested maximum flexibility 

for local procurement to meet emergent requirements and ensure timely delivery, 

especially in light of delayed production and supply chain issues with U.S. industry. 

Question. Civilian Harm: In August, the State Department announced the new Civilian Harm Incident Response Guidance, under which U.S. officials will investigate 

reports of civilian harm by partner governments suspected of misusing U.S. weapons and recommend actions that could include suspension of arms sales. Can the 

Department of State provide assurance that if American weapons provided to Israel 

inflict civilian harm and violate human rights, that the agency will fully implement 

the Civilian Harm Incident Response Guidance process? 

Answer. Yes, the State Department is implementing the Civilian Harm Incident 

Response Guidance globally, including with respect to the current conflict between 

Israel and Hamas, to review incidents of civilian harm potentially involving U.S.- 

furnished or authorized end-items. When credible information is received, the Department investigates the report and develops coordinated policy response recommendations to mitigate and prevent further civilian harm. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JOE MANCHIN

Question. The national security supplemental funding request we’ve received totals over $105 billion. We’ve also advanced the appropriations bills for both the Department of State (State Department) and the Department of Dense (DoD) which, 

together, total nearly $900 billion. How are you ensuring we’re not providing duplicative funding in either the national security supplemental request or the FY24 appropriations bills? 

Answer. The State Department is seeking additional emergency supplemental 

funds to address national security needs that surpass our base appropriation. Our 

request includes assistance to enable Israel and Ukraine to defend themselves 

against horrific attacks, to strengthen our partners and bolster security in the IndoPacific, and to provide life-saving humanitarian assistance to vulnerable people 

around the world. Without supplemental funding, we would have to choose between 

investing in core global programs, such as advancing democracy and health security, 

or addressing emergent crises. 

Question. As you both know since the beginning of Putin’s illegal war in Ukraine, 

the United States has provided over $76 billion in justified funding to support 

Ukraine, and we annually provide over $3 billion to Israel. The issue of accountability is highly important to ensure good stewardship of American resources, but 

also to disprove the disinformation campaigns that support the false narratives of 

Putin, Iran, and terrorist organizations such as Hamas. Can you each simply explain the Joint Strategic Oversight Plan that was announced this year by the Inspectors General for DoD, the State Department, and the United States Agency for 

International Development (USAID)? 

Answer. Due to the statutory independence of the State Department’s Office of the 

Inspector General, they will communicate directly with your office. 

Question. We simply must do better to get accountability reporting out to the public, can each of your Departments put together a fact sheet that our office can use 

when discussing this topic with our constituents? 
78 

Answer. Due to the statutory independence of the State Department’s Office of the 

Inspector General, they will communicate directly with your office. 

Question. Secretary Blinken, this is a question for multiple agencies in the Federal Government, but your Department has the lead so I’m hoping to get a good answer from you. My position has been consistent that we should only put sanctions 

relief on the table after bad actors have demonstrated good behavior, but the Iran 

Deal went counter to this. Additionally, Iran reportedly has a fleet of 16 ‘‘ghost 

ships’’ which transport oil and evade sanctions by turning off their transponders to 

secretly transfer oil, but we have DoD, State, and Intelligence Community assets 

that keep a close eye on these ships. Why aren’t we immediately seizing every oil 

tanker leaving Iran and selling that oil to finance part of the assistance we’re sending to Israel? 

Answer. This Administration has not lifted any sanctions on Iran, including those 

on its energy sector, and will continue to enforce U.S. sanctions on Iran. I must 

refer you to the Department of Justice for further comment on the seizure actions 

it has undertaken with respect to Iranian-origin oil. 

Question. Do you need any legislative authority to do that? 

Answer. I must refer to the Department of Justice on whether additional authorities would better facilitate these law enforcement actions to the extent consistent 

with international law. 

Question. Recent open source reporting also says these ghost ships are also transporting Russian oil, why aren’t we doing the same thing to finance Ukraine’s assistance? 

Answer. The Department does not have sanctions against exports of Russian oil 

to third countries; restricting the flow of Russian oil ultimately raises global prices 

and increases revenues back to Putin. The oil price cap policy works to constrain 

Russia’s revenues while ensuring sufficient supply on global markets. Russia has responded to our pressure by turning to some service providers that lack a track 

record of safety and environmental standards. The Department is committed to 

working with allies, partners, and industry to reduce the heightened risks Russia 

is imposing on global maritime oil trade. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR GARY PETERS

Question. Secretary Blinken, what programs does the State Department have in 

place to address the root causes that are driving migration? 

Answer. The Administration’s FY 2024 budget request includes $978.8 million in 

State Department and USAID foreign assistance to continue support for the Root 

Causes Strategy for Central America. These funds would sustain and expand programming to support a democratic, prosperous, and safe Central America, where 

people have access to economic opportunities; can live, work, and learn in safety and 

dignity; contribute and benefit from democratic processes; have confidence in public 

institutions; and enjoy opportunities to create futures for themselves and their families at home. 

Question. How does this supplemental support those programs? 

Answer. Funds in the border supplemental request would complement State Department and USAID programs by expanding migration integration support to host 

target communities, increase access to labor pathway mechanisms, and promote engagement with the private sector and multilateral partners to spur greater investment in integration initiatives. 

These funds will address urgent needs to support safe, orderly, and humane migration in the hemisphere and bolster efforts to reduce irregular encounters at the 

U.S. southwest border. 

Question. Secretary Blinken, does the Office of the Special Envoy to Monitor and 

Combat Antisemitism have the necessary resources to respond to these increased 

threats? 

Answer. Ambassador Lipstadt and her small team have done amazing work to 

counter global antisemitism with a relatively small budget. The State Department 

made full use of the $1.5 million provided for the Office of the Special Envoy to 

Monitor and Combat Antisemitism (J/SEAS) in FY 2023 to support the U.S. response to the rapid global rise of antisemitism. The FY 2024 request includes an 

additional position in J/SEAS to combat rising antisemitism globally. As the process 

moves forward, we greatly appreciate strong Congressional support for the Department’s efforts to combat hate. 

Question. Additionally, how is the State Department handling the responsibility 

of curbing anti-Muslim hate? 
79 

Answer. The State Department regularly denounces discrimination and abuses 

against Muslim individuals in our diplomacy. The Office of International Religious 

Freedom (IRF) advocates for the rights of Muslims as part of its religious freedom 

mandate under the IRF Act, the National Security Strategy, and E.O. 14091. The 

Department documents hatred against all religions in the annual IRF report, and 

we use the office’s earmark for foreign assistance programs to support the rights of 

Muslims and other religious communities where they are targets of religiously motivated violence, discrimination, and inequality. 

Question. Given that this supplemental package includes over $9 billion in much 

needed humanitarian assistance for crises around the world, can you share how the 

State Department plans to continue providing lifesaving assistance to the people of 

Armenia? 

Answer. Since 2020, the United States has provided more than $23 million to the 

Nagorno-Karabakh response, including in Armenia. The State Department is in 

touch with the Government of Armenia and humanitarian organizations working on 

the ground, and we will continue to assess needs as the situation develops. Additionally, the Department will continue to urge Azerbaijan to guarantee ethnic Armenians who fled Nagorno-Karabakh a safe, dignified, and sustainable return, should 

they so choose, with protections of their rights and security. 

QUESTION SUBMITTED BY VICE CHAIR SUSAN M. COLLINS

Question. Secretary Blinken, how would abandoning Ukraine affect America’s 

global standing and America’s other international interests? 

Answer. A lapse in U.S. support would immediately impact Ukraine’s battlefield 

performance, compromise NATO Allies’ security, call into question U.S. commitments to our core values and to a free and fair international system, and affirm for 

Putin that he can wait out Ukraine’s supporters. The Department expects other security assistance donors would follow our lead, which is why our continued support 

is important to get Ukraine the security assistance it needs. It would also risk Allied and partner unity on sanctions and other economic measures meant to change 

Russia’s calculus for waging this war. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR LISA MURKOWSKI

Question. Earlier this month we saw your Director of Political-Military Affairs resign stating President Biden was repeating the same mistakes Washington has been 

making for decades, referring to the ‘‘blind support for one side’’. Additionally, the 

top concern that I’ve heard from my constituents in Alaska that oppose military 

support for Israel is that they don’t want to support a conflict that creates so many 

civilian casualties. Obviously, civilian casualties are driving the strongest opposition 

to the United States helping Israel. When U.S. provided weapons systems to 

Ukraine, you all put certain limitations on the way they could be used, such as software that disallowed striking targets too far inside of Russia, in order to prevent 

the war from going in a direction that we didn’t want it to go. Are you considering 

any methods to limit civilian casualties in the conflict between Israel and Hamas? 

Answer. The U.S. government is committed to fully providing for Israel’s self-defense. At the same time, the State Department has made clear to Israel that it matters how it conducts this war, that their forces must operate in a manner consistent 

with international humanitarian law, and the Department has urged Israel to take 

all possible steps to protect civilians. The Department also continues to discuss with 

Israel our own experience working to minimize civilian harm. 

Question. The Israelis have stated their objective is to eliminate Hamas. This is 

a very difficult objective considering most would concur that the U.S objective to 

eliminate ISIS, the Taliban, and al-Quaida after 9/11 was unsuccessful because we 

didn’t have a clear objective that would trigger the declaration of a successful mission. Have you identified meaningful objectives that we can assist Israel in completing that will move them closer to the cessation of this conflict? 

Answer. Beyond any military operation, defeating Hamas requires defeating an 

idea. The way to do that is by presenting a better idea: a better future, with a clear 

vision and a path to achieve that vision. The Administration continues to believe 

that a negotiated two-state solution along the 1967 lines—with mutually agreed-to 

swaps—is the best way to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. 
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QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JOHN BOOZMAN

Question. Secretary Blinken, we have a fentanyl crisis in this country. This supplemental includes funding to provide resources to stop the flow of fentanyl into the 

United States. Secretary Blinken, the State Department released a statement on 13 

October that states, ‘‘Together, the United States and Mexico will intensify our efforts to combat illicit drug trafficking, particularly synthetic drugs such as fentanyl 

and their chemical precursors.’’ DHS surge efforts, like Operation Blue Lotus and 

Four Horsemen, resulted in seizures of 12,500 pounds of fentanyl. Secretary 

Blinken, do you believe fentanyl trafficking into the United States is a national security issue? 

Answer. The State Department consider the manufacturing, trafficking, and consumption of synthetic drugs like fentanyl as a top national security and public 

health priority. The Department launched a Global Coalition to Address Synthetic 

Drug Threats to advance international action to counter global synthetic drug supply chains and demand. The Department use accountability tools to complement diplomatic efforts, including designating over 150 fentanyl-related targets through E.O. 

14059 and announcing over $85 million in fentanyl-related reward offers for those 

involved in the synthetic drug supply chain since 2021. 

Question. Secretary Blinken, what efforts are being worked to enable first responders to detect the presence of fentanyl and emerging variants in real time prior 

to entering the US, at the border, and within the US? 

Answer. The State Department learns from and incorporates DHS best practices 

into our foreign assistance programming. The Department work closely with DEA 

to identify the latest patterns and trends related to fentanyl trafficking and synthetic drug composition. Both DHS and DEA are actively engaged in the Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats. The Department are also building Mexico’s capacity to regulate and prevent the diversion of precursor chemicals, seize 

clandestine drug labs, interdict illicit drugs, and investigate and disrupt drug manufacturing, trafficking, and related illicit finance. 

Question. Secretary Blinken, the cartels are manufacturing new fentanyl variants 

that make it harder to detect and counter. What efforts are being made todevelop 

and field new technologies for fentanyl detection that can’t be deceived by evolutions 

in the drug’s chemistry, enable forensic determination of the source, and facilitate 

antidote administration in real time? 

Answer. The State Department learns from and incorporates DEA and DHS best 

practices into our foreign assistance programming. The Department refer you to 

DEA’s Special Testing Laboratory and DHS’s science and technology experts for 

their assessments of new technology. 

Question. Should the US be investing in developing and fielding these types of 

leading edge technologies? 

Answer. The State Department learns from and incorporates DEA and DHS best 

practices into our foreign assistance programming. The Department refer you to 

DEA and DHS’s science and technology experts for their assessments of new technology. 

Question. As you know the impact from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and then 

Putin pulling out of the Black Sea Grain Initiative has drastically worsened the 

global food crisis at a time when the world is experiencing a hunger crisis of unprecedented proportions. Putin also continues to attack Ukrainian ports and grain while 

gaining record agricultural exports and profit at the expense of starving families. 

Would you agree that Putin is weaponizing food? 

Answer. The State Department agree Putin is weaponizing food. Russia’s war in 

Ukraine has exacerbated global food insecurity, disrupted grain and fertilizer markets, and increased the vulnerability of people around the world. Russia’s unilateral 

termination of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, and its ongoing destruction of Ukrainian grain and infrastructure manipulate markets and hurt the Global South. To 

counter Russia’s weaponization of food, the Department is working with partners 

and allies to develop alternative routes for Ukraine to export its grain, including 

through EU solidarity lanes and Danube ports. 

Question. Even with Ukraine’s new humanitarian corridor to complement the 

Danube River ports and other solidarity lanes, are there any opportunities for international collaboration or partnerships that could provide additional security and 

protection for Ukraine’s grain shipments? 

Answer. With the Kremlin disinterested in resuming the Black Sea Grain Initiative, the Department continue to engage Tu ̈ rkiye and the UN as they look for an 

alternative that could provide a more predictable Black Sea shipping option than 

the humanitarian corridor alone, which more than 150 vessels have traversed. 

Mines and security remain a significant concern and three NATO members— 
81 

Tu ̈ rkiye, Bulgaria, and Romania—have agreed on a joint mine sweeping force to improve the corridor’s safety. The United States and our partners continue contributions to bolster air defense at Ukraine’s ports. 

Question. What is the administration’s plan for ensuring humanitarian aid to 

Gaza is not diverted to Hamas or other terrorist organizations? 

Answer. The Administration provides humanitarian assistance through trusted 

international and local partners in a manner consistent with applicable U.S. law. 

The United States has robust oversight systems in place to prevent diversion, and 

we require our humanitarian partners to have the same. Israel also monitors and 

approves all humanitarian assistance going into Gaza and is tracking how it is distributed inside Gaza. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO

Question. In the supplemental request materials received by Congress, there are 

a few buckets of funding that appear to include humanitarian aid for Ukraine, 

Israel, for Gaza, and for ‘‘countries impacted by the situation’’ in those places. Which 

other impacted countries would be receiving these humanitarian funds? 

Answer. The majority of the requested humanitarian assistance funds will support 

global humanitarian needs, such as providing access to life-saving food assistance, 

sanitation, health care, safe drinking water, and shelter. The U.S. government will 

be able to continue responding to unprecedented levels of need from natural disasters and conflicts, from floods in Libya to conflict in Sudan; the flight of Armenians 

from Nagorno-Karabakh to earthquakes in Afghanistan, Tu ̈ rkiye, and Syria; and the 

recent impacts of Hurricane Otis in Mexico and Tropical Cyclone Lola in Vanuatu. 

Question. If you were to receive the requested $5.7 billion under International 

Disaster Assistance and the $3.5 billion under Migration and Refugee Assistance, 

how would that funding ultimately be spent among Israel, Ukraine, Gaza, and other 

countries impacted? 

Answer. While some of the requested funds address the acute humanitarian needs 

inside Ukraine and Gaza, the vast majority of the requested humanitarian assistance funds will provide vulnerable populations around the world with access to lifesaving food, nutrition assistance, sanitation, health care, safe drinking water, shelter, and other basic needs. This assistance will enable the U.S. government to respond to new disasters as they arise. Major crises to be addressed include those in 

Sudan, Yemen, Syria, Ethiopia, and elsewhere. 

Question. For aid provided to the Palestinians, which countries or organizations 

are responsible for handling delivery? 

Answer. UNRWA has a global mandate to assist Palestinian refugees. UNRWA 

also serves as the provider of last resort for other Palestinians in need, including 

in Gaza as well as Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and the West Bank. Other UN agencies, 

international organizations, and NGOs also deliver humanitarian assistance to Palestinians. Regional partners, including the Governments of Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon, help facilitate aid delivery. Israel monitors and inspects all humanitarian assistance going into Gaza and is tracking how it is distributed inside Gaza. 

Question. What is the UN’s role in the provision of assistance to the Palestinians? 

Answer. UNRWA provides humanitarian assistance to Palestinian refugees and 

other vulnerable Palestinians—both in Gaza and the West Bank as well as in three 

other regional areas of operation: Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria. UNRWA also coordinates the work of other UN agencies in Gaza, given its unique presence and capacity there. Other UN agencies, such as UNICEF and the WFP, have scaled up their 

own assistance to civilians in Gaza since October 7 and also coordinate with 

UNRWA in other locations, including Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and the West Bank. 

Question. Is UNRWA a reliable partner in this effort? 

Answer. Yes. For this reason, the United States is the top donor to UNRWA, providing $422 million against its 2023 appeals. UNRWA is the only UN agency with 

the experience, footprint, and personnel necessary to deliver aid rapidly, effectively, 

and safely. Since the onset of this crisis, UNRWA has supported millions of vulnerable people in Gaza despite unprecedented challenges, including the staff’s own dislocation, and while maintaining operations elsewhere. UNRWA follows strict procedures to maintain neutrality and prevent the transfer of supplies to Hamas or other 

terrorists. 

Question. What visibility does the U.S. have into how humanitarian items are 

used on the ground? 

Answer. The U.S. government has robust monitoring processes to ensure humanitarian relief reaches those in need and to mitigate the risk of material support to 

Hamas or other terrorists. These include vetting implementing partners and their 
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key personnel; monitoring partner activities directly and through third parties; conducting post-distribution surveys; and coordinating closely with Israel, which monitors and inspects all humanitarian assistance going into Gaza and is tracking how 

it is distributed inside Gaza. The 2023–2024 U.S.-UNRWA Framework for Cooperation lays out oversight commitments. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR BILL HAGERTY

Question. On the Necessity of Transparency for U.S. Foreign Assistance to 

Hamas- Controlled Gaza: I first posed questions (1) and (2) directly to you via a letter that I sent to you on October 26, 2023. In that letter, I requested that ‘‘the State 

Department and USAID fully and faithfully respond to the two questions below 

prior to Secretary Blinken’s appearances before the Senate Appropriations Committee hearing titled ‘A Review of the National Security Supplemental Request’ on 

October 31, 2023.’’ During the Senate Appropriations hearing on October 31, 2023, 

Secretary Blinken committed to providing full and faithful answers to two questions 

below. I therefore am repeating the questions so that the Senate Appropriations 

Committee receives answers to these questions that are relevant to responding to 

the Administration’s request for a National Security Supplemental. Although 

Hamas—a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO)—controls Gaza, 

the United States has continued to send U.S. foreign assistance to Gaza. For each 

of the following appropriations laws, I request the Department of State and United 

States Agency for International Development (USAID) to provide the total amount 

awarded—directly or indirectly—to any entity in Gaza, including whether the entity 

in Gaza was a recipient or sub recipient: 

—Amounts provided by Titles III, IV, V, and VI of Division F of Public Law 116– 

6, 

—Amounts provided by Titles III, IV, V, and VI of Division G of Public Law 116– 

94, 

—Amounts provided by Titles III, IV, V, and VI of Division K of Public Law 116– 

260, 

—Amounts provided by Titles III, IV, V, and VI of Division K of Public Law 117– 

103, and 

—Amounts provided by Titles III, IV, V, and VI of Division K of Public Law 117– 

328. 

Answer. Thank you for your October 25 letter to me and Administrator Power concerning the use of U.S. foreign assistance. The U.S. government considers the responsible use of all taxpayer funds to be of the utmost importance. U.S. economic 

and humanitarian assistance programs in Gaza are designed to bolster stability for 

both Palestinians and Israelis through the provision of life-saving assistance and by 

improving the lives of millions of Palestinians, with the ultimate goal of promoting 

a negotiated two-state solution. The Department is working to provide a response 

to your letter soon. 

Question. For each award provided—directly or indirectly—to an entity in Gaza, 

including whether the entity in Gaza was a recipient or sub recipient, under the 

appropriation laws described in question (1), I request the Department of State and 

USAID to provide: 

—the total amount awarded, 

—the source of the appropriation, 

—whether the amount has been obligated, and 

—what amounts remain unexpended. 

Answer. The response to your letter will be transmitted soon. 

Question. On the Administration’s Support for ‘‘Humanitarian Pauses’’ in Israel’s 

War Against Hamas and Other Iran-Backed Palestinian Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) in Gaza: Please clearly explain your understanding of the difference 

between a ‘‘ceasefire,’’ which the Administration has said it does not support, and 

a ‘‘humanitarian pause,’’ for which the Administration has repeatedly advocated. 

Answer. Humanitarian pauses are temporary, localized stoppages to fighting 

aimed to permit civilians to depart areas of active hostilities, allow for or increase 

the flow of aid, and enable hostage releases. Alternatively, a ceasefire is an indefinite cessation of military action which, in this case, would restrict Israel’s ability 

to defend itself from Hamas terrorists. The Administration’s position is that a 

ceasefire right now would only benefit Hamas by giving them time to regroup and 

plot new attacks. 

Question. Can you describe what kind of ‘‘pause’’ in Israeli military operations 

would not benefit Hamas by giving them time to regroup? 
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Answer. Humanitarian pauses of limited duration allowing for the release of hostages and/or the establishment of humanitarian corridors would not give Hamas the 

same time to regroup that it might have otherwise exploited under a ceasefire. The 

pauses would also serve other strategic purposes. 

Question. Please list other examples where any state besides the Jewish state of 

Israel was pressured to agree to ‘‘humanitarian pauses’’ to protect civilians whom 

its adversary was purposefully using as human shields and where the ‘‘pause’’ was 

not conditioned on any change in behavior by the adversary. 

Answer. Humanitarian pauses or truces aimed at temporarily facilitating the delivery of humanitarian assistance have previously been observed in numerous contexts around the world—for example in Ethiopia, Indonesia, Syria, and Yemen. In 

those cases, pauses were often pursued despite state and/or nonstate armed actors’ 

inconsistent respect for the protection of civilians and adherence to the principle of 

distinction. In the case of Israel, the humanitarian pause was contingent on a 

change in Hamas’s behavior, namely the release of hostages. 

Question. On the Administration’s Waiver Enabling Iraq to Provide Funds to Iran: 

How much money has been spent out of these previously sanctioned funds since the 

July waiver? 

Answer. The Administration continues to strictly enforce U.S. sanctions on Iran. 

Iran can only request that proceeds from Iraqi energy purchases be sent to third 

parties for humanitarian and other non-sanctionable transactions. None of the funds 

will ever enter Iran. Between July 18 and November 14, approximately $848.3 million was spent from Iran’s restricted funds held in Iraq. This includes approximately 

$732.2 million for foodstuffs and approximately $118.4 million for Iranian dues owed 

to the KSA-based Islamic Development Bank. 

Question. Since October 7, has the Biden Administration refrozen all funds in 

Iraq, Oman, France, and Germany? If so, by what means? 

Answer. Iranian funds held in Iraq or elsewhere remain restricted. Along with 

trusted partners, we have established rigorous oversight mechanisms so that these 

restricted funds can only be used for humanitarian trade, meaning food, medicine, 

medical devices, and agricultural products from third-party vendors, as well as certain other non-sanctionable purposes with separate authorization by the U.S. government. None of the funds will ever enter Iran. It is in the U.S. interest that this 

money be spent from Iran’s accounts held overseas to reduce Iran’s leverage over 

Iraq. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED TO HON. LLOYD J. AUSTIN III 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JOE MANCHIN

Question. As you both know since the beginning of Putin’s illegal war in Ukraine, 

the United States has provided over $76 billion in justified funding to support 

Ukraine, and we annually provide over $3 billion to Israel. 

The issue of accountability is highly important to ensure good stewardship of 

American resources, but also to disprove the disinformation campaigns that support 

the false narratives of Putin, Iran, and terrorist organizations such as Hamas. 

Can you each simply explain the Joint Strategic Oversight Plan that was announced this year by the Inspectors General for DoD, the State Department, and 

the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)? 

Answer. In September 2023, the Chair of the Council of the Inspectors General 

on Integrity and Efficiency announced the selection, effective October 18, 2023, of 

the Honorable Robert P. Storch, the Department of Defense Inspector General, as 

the Lead Inspector General (Lead IG) for Operation Atlantic Resolve, which includes 

U.S. Government activities related to Ukraine, in accordance with the Inspector 

General Act of 1978, as amended (5 U.S.C. Section 419, previously found at 5, 

U.S.C. App, Section 8L). 

Section 419 of the IG Act requires the Lead IG to engage in a strategic oversight 

planning process to ensure comprehensive oversight of U.S. Government activities 

related to overseas contingency operations. During the oversight planning process, 

the Lead IG agencies developed strategic oversight areas (SOA), identified as 1) Security Assistance and Coordination, 2) Non-security Assistance and Coordination, 

and 3) Management and Operations. The Lead IG staffs considered many factors 

during this process, including U.S. Government and partner objectives; the amount 

of resources appropriated or otherwise made available to support military, diplomatic, and humanitarian activities; major departmental management challenges 

identified by each of the Lead IG agencies; and feedback from departmental and 

congressional stakeholders. The Joint Strategic Oversight Plan issued by the Inspec-
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tors General for the Department of Defense, State, and U.S. Agency for International Development (collectively referred to as the Lead IG agencies) on October 

26, 2023, represents a steadfast commitment to work together to provide Congress 

and the American public with transparent, timely, and comprehensive oversight to 

ensure that U.S. assistance is reaching intended beneficiaries, achieving intended 

goals, and free from fraud, waste, and abuse. It describes specific projects that Lead 

IG and partner oversight agencies intend to conduct during FY 2024. 

Question. We simply must do better to get accountability reporting out to the public, can each of your Departments put together a fact sheet that our office can use 

when discussing this topic with our constituents? 

Answer. A fact sheet for the Joint Strategic Oversight Plan is enclosed with this 

submission. It highlights strategic oversight areas for Operation Atlantic Resolve 

and describes the on-going and planned oversight work of the Lead IG Agencies. 

The DoD OIG also welcomes an opportunity to provide further information on specific oversight issues of interest to the Committee and Senator Manchin. 
85 

CONCLUSION OF HEARING

Chair MURRAY. With that, the committee stands adjourned. 

[Whereupon, at 1:08 p.m., Tuesday, October 31, the hearing was 

concluded, and the committee was recessed, to reconvene subject to 

the call of the Chair.] 

Æ