The US Department of Defense has received a $130 million donation from an anonymous donor to help pay salaries for US military personnel who may have missed out on pay due to budget delays during the ongoing “shutdown” government.
According to NBC News, President Donald Trump first announced the fact, noting that the money came from a “patriot” and “his friend”.
The Pentagon confirmed the receipt of the anonymous contribution and noted that the funds were intended solely to cover the costs of salaries and benefits of military personnel during the suspension of federal structures.
“The donation was made with the condition that it would be used to compensate for the salaries of the military. We are grateful for this support, especially given that Democrats have delayed the approval of military payments, – said Defense Department spokesman Sean Parnell.
However, according to experts, this amount will not have a significant impact, since the total cost of salaries in the US Armed Forces is estimated at billions of dollars.
Recall that the “shutdown” of the federal government, which began on October 1, was the result of political disputes between Republicans and Democrats over the funding project. On Thursday, the Senate did not support any of the proposed bills: the Republican version provided for payments only to the military and “critical” employees, while the Democratic one covered all civil servants.
On October 11, Trump instructed the Pentagon to make part of the payments to the military from “free” funds intended for research and development. It is currently unknown from what sources the government plans to provide the next payment – in the amount of $ 6.37 billion, the deadline for which is approaching.
Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson suggested that the current “shutdown” could become the longest in US history.
