Ukraine claims to have made so-called "invisibility cloaks" to hide soldiers from thermal imaging and drones

The removal of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy from the US Congress casts a dark cloud over the already troubled process of Washington's military and financial aid for Ukraine. 

Without a speaker, the House is unable to pass legislation, and it may be weeks before another speaker is elected. 

The vote to remove McCarthy follows a weekend deal in which funding for the US government was extended for 45 days -- but in which no provision was made for fresh aid to Ukraine. 

That left the Biden administration's $24 billion request for fresh military aid, submitted to Congress in the summer, in limbo. It also left the coffers dangerously low. 

President Joe Biden said over the weekend that he expected Speaker McCarthy “to keep his commitment to secure the passage and support needed to help Ukraine as they defend themselves against aggression and brutality.” 

But McCarthy is now out of office and has ruled out running for speaker again. While it's unclear who might succeed him, several potential candidates are skeptical about continuing support for Ukraine at current levels. 

McCarthy himself warned: "Our members have a lot of questions, especially on the accountability provisions of what we want to see with the money that gets sent." 

Pentagon warning: Many analysts estimate that Ukraine's current "burn rate" of equipment, munitions and maintenance in the conflict with Russia is about $2.5 billion a month, perhaps higher. Much of the funding for that spending comes from Washington.  

Last week, the Pentagon's chief financial officer, Michael McCord, warned Congressional leaders that money for Ukraine was running low. In a letter subsequently released by House Democrats, McCord said that the Pentagon had about $5.4 billion left in what's known as presidential drawdown authority, which allows the rapid dispatch of weapons from existing stocks. That's essentially about two months' money. 

McCord also warned that of the roughly $26 billion that Congress had authorized to replace weapons and equipment that had been sent to Ukraine, only $1.6 billion remains. 

One pipeline, the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), is already empty. McCord told Congressional leaders that "a lack of USAI funding now will delay contracting actions that could negatively impact the department’s ability to purchase essential additional 155mm artillery and critical munitions essential to the success of Ukraine’s armed forces.” 

“Without additional funding now, we would have to delay or curtail assistance to meet Ukraine’s urgent requirements, including for air defense and ammunition that are critical and urgent now as Russia prepares to conduct a winter offensive and continues its bombardment of Ukrainian cities,” McCord wrote. 

Max Bergmann, director of Europe and Russia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, said that "the chaos in the House leaves Ukraine in a dangerous limbo."

"Let’s be clear, if the US Congress does not pass a funding bill, Ukraine will be in deep trouble. A lot of Ukrainians will die and their ability to fight on will be severely compromised," Bergmann said.

For Ukraine's military planners, the uncertainty is an immense challenge as they try to plot any winter offensive or where to place air defenses. 

Low European inventories: Bergmann and other analysts also highlighted that if US funding dwindles or gets delayed, European countries won't be able to pick up the slack. Inventories are already very low, as NATO officials warned Tuesday. 

"European militaries already had empty warehouses from decades of under-investment. There isn’t much left to give. Europeans can and should get their industries humming but this again takes time," Bergmann noted.

The funding of Ukraine's war effort by the United States has thus far amounted to $113 billion in security, economic and humanitarian aid since the Russian invasion. 

The Ukrainian government has not yet reacted to the latest news out of Washington but has tried to sound unruffled over the past few days. 

Responding to the news that aid to Ukraine had not been included in the temporary funding measure, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said, "The question is whether what happened in the US Congress last weekend is an incident or systematic," Kuleba said on the margins of a meeting with European Union foreign ministers. "I think it was an incident."