Seized Iran arms, ammo sent to Ukraine

The ongoing political crisis in the United States threatening to cut aid to Ukraine has President Joe Biden worrying.

"It does worry me," Biden told reporters when asked whether the ousting of Republican House speaker Kevin McCarthy by hardliners in his own party could derail more funds for Ukraine's war effort.

However, the president indicated there was "another means by which we may be able to find funding" without congressional approval, but would not give further details.

A 45-day stopgap budget law was passed by the US Congress and signed by Biden last week, but it doesn't contain funding for Ukraine.

The Pentagon says the government still has authority to withdraw $5.4 billion in equipment for Ukraine from US military stocks.

In the meantime, the US military has given Ukraine small arms ammunition seized from Iran last year.

"The US government transferred approximately 1.1 million 7.62mm rounds to the Ukrainian armed forces" on Monday, the military's Central Command said in a statement.

The ammunition was seized by US naval forces in December 2022 while it was "being transferred from the IRGC to the Huthis in Yemen," CENTCOM said, referring to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Yemeni rebel forces they support.

"The government obtained ownership of these munitions on July 20, 2023, through the Department of Justice's civil forfeiture claims" against the IRGC, it added.