U.S. can ‘certainly’ afford military support to both Israel and Ukraine, Janet Yellen says

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the country can “absolutely” afford to financially support both Israel and Ukraine in their respective war efforts.

President Joe Biden in a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday reiterated Washington’s “unwavering support” for Israel in its war against Palestinian militant group Hamas, and said he had provided Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with an update on both U.S. military support and efforts to protect civilians as the conflict escalates.

Though the White House has so far fully endorsed what it terms “Israel’s right to defend itself,” Biden noted in an interview with the CBS program “60 Minutes” that an Israeli re-occupation of Gaza would be a “big mistake” and that although Hamas should be eliminated entirely, there “must be a path to a Palestinian state.”

Secretary of State Antony Blinken made an unscheduled return to Israel on Monday, the 10th day of an Israeli aerial bombardment campaign of the Gaza Strip as part of an all-out siege that has seen water, food and electricity cut off to around 2 million people.

Asked in an interview with Britain’s Sky News on Monday whether the U.S. could afford to be providing military support to Israel and to Ukraine in its ongoing war with Russia, Yellen said “the answer is absolutely.”

“America can certainly afford to stand with Israel and to support Israel’s military needs and we also can and must support Ukraine in its struggle against Russia,” Yellen said, adding that the U.S. economy is doing “extremely well.”

“Inflation has been high and it’s been a concern to households, it’s come down considerably. At the same time, we have about the strongest labor market we’ve seen in 50 years with 3.8% unemployment. And at the same time, America, the Biden administration, has passed legislation that is…