US Treasury Secretary issues "ultimatum": deadline to raise debt ceiling is still June 1

On May 21, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen emphasized that the “deadline” to raise the debt ceiling is still June 1, with the possibility that the US government will collect enough to last until June 15 being very low, when many bills are due.

Bộ trưởng Tài chính Mỹ ra 'tối hậu thư' hạn chót để nâng trần nợ công vẫn là 1/6

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. (Source: Bloomberg)

Speaking on NBC 's Meet the Press , Yellen said there would be tough choices about how to pay Americans if Congress doesn't raise the $31.4 trillion debt ceiling before the Treasury runs out of money.

“In our last letter to Congress, we expressed our expectation that we would not be able to pay our bills in full by early June and possibly by June 1,” said Secretary Yellen.

And I will continue to update Congress, but I certainly haven't changed my mind. So I think that's the deadline."

Previously, in her second letter to the US Congress in the past two weeks, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen confirmed that by early June, the agency may no longer be able to cover all of the government's payment obligations.

This means Washington will default on its debt for the first time in history. Ms. Yellen said that to avoid default, the debt ceiling must be raised before June 1.

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