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Breaking news: Speaker Mike Johnson said in a letter to the White House Tuesday that the House won’t pass aid to Ukraine unless Congress enacts “transformative change to our nation’s border security laws.”

This is the latest signal yet that U.S. assistance for Ukraine is in serious jeopardy. And it comes as Biden administration officials are warning they’re out of money and out of time to continue helping Ukraine’s military fight back against Russia.

Here’s the key excerpt in the letter to OMB Director Shalanda Young:

The letter states publicly for the first time Johnson’s hard-line standard on sending money to Ukraine. “Transformative” border policy for Republicans is embodied in H.R. 2, the sweeping border-security bill that the House passed in May. No House Democrats voted for that proposal and it hasn’t gone anywhere in the Democratic-run Senate.

Johnson’s letter is similar to what the speaker told congressional leaders in private last week — that he would not put any Ukraine funding bill on the floor without the inclusion of H.R. 2. It also puts him at odds once again with Senate Republicans and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

On Monday, Young wrote to Johnson explaining just how dire the situation is for Ukraine. Young warned that Russia will see battlefield victories as soon as next month if the United States doesn’t approve more military aid for Kyiv.

Johnson also states that the White House hasn’t provided answers about “the Administration’s strategy to prevail in Ukraine; clearly defined and obtainable objectives; transparency and accountability for U.S. taxpayer dollars invested there; and what specific resources are required to achieve victory and a sustainable peace.”

Johnson’s missive to the White House comes as top Ukrainian officials are lobbying lawmakers on why additional aid is desperately needed. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is scheduled to join an all-Senate classified briefing via video at 3:00 p.m. And the speaker of Ukraine’s parliament, Ruslan Stefanchuk, will be at the Capitol today meeting with lawmakers from both parties and both chambers.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries have both said H.R. 2 is a nonstarter for Democrats.

And even top Senate Republicans have said they know it’s unrealistic to think that bill could pass the Senate.

Senate GOP border negotiators have repeatedly said — including Monday night — they weren’t demanding H.R. 2 in their talks with Democrats.

“We’re not asking for H.R. 2, the House is. But Sen. Lankford, who’s been the point on this, has been very reasonable,” Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) said. “It’s very difficult for us to go back home and say we dealt with Israel, we dealt with Ukraine but we didn’t deal with our own national security crisis at the southern border.”

Johnson has shifted since becoming speaker on Ukraine. The Louisiana Republican voted against money for Kyiv when he was in the rank and file of the House Republican Conference.

But when he became speaker, Johnson said it was important to support the Ukrainian government to avoid Russian encroachment across the European continent.

— Jake Sherman, Andrew Desiderio and Heather Caygle