WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden has told Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky that Washington will not abandon Kyiv in its war against Moscow, even as Republican lawmakers signaled opposition to extending American war funding.
Biden hosted his Ukrainian counterpart Zelenkskyy, at the White House Tuesday for closed-door talks as a military assistance package worth tens of billions of dollars remains delayed in Congress.
The US President said in brief remarks before journalists that he authorized a 200 million dollars transfer of army weapons from the current US stocks for Kyiv, but he and his top officials have been warning for months that funding is fast expiring. Officials have warned already-appropriated funds is likely to run out by end of this year.
Ukraine War: US President Hosts Zelenskyy at White House as Aid Languishes in Congress
Biden said that the Congress needs to approve the supplemental funding for Kyiv before they break for the holiday vacation, before they give Russian President Putin the greatest Christmas gift, they could possibly give him.
Ukraine’s troops remain locked in war with Russian troops in eastern Ukraine in hopes of ousting Russian forces from the county.
Speaking alongside Joe Biden, President Zelenskyy claimed Ukrainian troops have been successful in ousting Russian forces from the Black Sea, adding Russia is “hiding the remnants of its naval fleet in isolated bases.”
Ukraine’s leader Zelenskyy said around 600,000 Ukrainians remain on the battleground in defiance of the three-year-long conflict.
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Republicans in the US Congress have so far halted its passage, conditioning any support of a major tightening of American border policy that Democrats think is a non-starter. The 61.4 billion dollars in Ukraine funding is part of a major 110 billion dollars bundle pleaded by Biden’s administration to fund his key national security priorities.
