US Treasury says country 'won't survive' even until mid-June

“My assessment is that the chances of being able to pay all our debts by June 15 are quite low,” said Ms. Yellen. Therefore, the government must find a way out of the crisis before June 1. According to the Secretary, this is a tight deadline. After June 15, we can expect “quite large” tax payments, but the US is unlikely to survive until that date, the official concluded.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. Photo: AP​ ​

In the latest development, US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said that the May 21 phone call between him and President Joe Biden on raising the debt ceiling was "productive" and that the two sides will meet on May 22 to continue discussing the issue, as soon as Mr. Biden returns from attending the Group of Seven (G7) Summit in Hiroshima (Japan). According to Mr. McCarthy, President Biden spoke to him by phone on Air Force One on the way back to the US.

The White House issued a statement on the same day saying that expert-level negotiations will resume on the evening of May 21 (US time) before House Speaker McCarthy and President Biden meet in person.

Meanwhile, Mr. McCarthy said that Republican representatives Garret Graves and Patrick McHenry will attend these negotiations. The US public debt is the amount of money owed by the federal government to creditors.

For 20 years, Washington has been borrowing money to cover its budget deficit. The lenders are individuals, countries, and large funds. As of January, the total public debt has reached the ceiling of 31.381 trillion USD. Currently, the White House is asking Congress to raise the ceiling unconditionally. At the same time, the House of Representatives, with a majority of seats belonging to the Republican Party, is linking this move to a request to cut budget spending./.