WASHINGTON, August 16. /TASS/. Since February 2022, the US Congress has allocated $174.19 billion for various needs related to Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine, according to a joint report by special inspectors for the Department of Defense, the Department of State and the US Agency for International Development.

The reports says that "as of the end of this quarter, since February 2022 the US Congress had appropriated more than $174.19 billion in supplemental funding for the US response" to Russia’s special military operation.

The special inspectors said the funds were directed for military, direct budget, development, and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine, along with "security assistance for NATO allies and other partner nations; funding to support enhanced US military presence and activity in Europe; and replenishment of US and other nations’ military stocks transferred to the UAF [Ukrainian Armed Forces]."

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on June 13 that NATO has long been preparing for an armed clash with Russia, justifying these efforts by the need to defend themselves from the imaginary "Russian threat." In her words, NATO countries’ defense budgets continue to expand, and their economies are becoming completely militarized. At the same time, she emphasized that Russia has not harbored any aggressive plans with regard to NATO and its member countries.