Published December 13, 2023
On Tuesday, as President Volodymyr Zelensky was paying another visit to Washington under dramatically altered circumstances, Biden pledged the US would provide critical weapons and equipment “as long as we can.”
The quiet shift in language appeared to acknowledge a reality made even starker following Zelensky’s eleventh-hour appeal for more assistance: American backing for Ukraine is neither a guarantee nor an open-ended commitment. What comes next for Ukraine – a harsh winter of Russian attacks on Ukraine’s infrastructure made worse by the fading prospect of help coming from Capitol Hill – is daunting.
Biden administration officials say that both the US and Ukraine recognize that Ukraine has to change its strategy in the coming year if it wants to push the Russians further back and secure a more favorable negotiating position once the time comes for peace talks.
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SOURCE: www.edition.cnn.com
RELATED: Zelenskyy urges new Ukraine aid, as Biden warns funding delay helps Putin
Ukrainian president goes on diplomatic offensive in Washington, DC to try and win over sceptical right-wing Republicans.
President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as they meet in the Oval Office [Evan Vucci/AP Photo]
Published December 13, 2023
US President Joe Biden has warned Russia was banking on the United States abandoning Ukraine as he promised visiting President Volodymyr Zelenskyy his full support and announced $200m in weaponry to help Kyiv push out Russian forces.
The White House said the security package could be “one of the last” if Republicans did not approve the new military aid plan, which includes about $61.4bn for Ukraine as well as support for Israel and which is currently stuck in Congress.
Biden said right-wing lawmakers’ refusal to approve the package also risked handing Russian President Vladimir Putin a “Christmas gift” of victory.
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SOURCE: www.aljazeera.com
RELATED: Zelenskyy pleads for Ukraine aid at Capitol and White House, says to US: Our fight is yours
Published December 13, 2023
WASHINGTON (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told America his country was fighting for “our freedom and yours” as he made an impassioned plea Tuesday for Congress to approve more assistance to fight Russia’s invasion.
But prospects for additional U.S. aid to Ukraine appeared seriously delayed, if not in grave doubt, despite his whirlwind diplomacy in Washington.
After hours of talks on Capitol Hill, Zelenskyy spent more hours at the White House meeting with President Joe Biden and his aides about a way forward. The U.S. has already provided Ukraine $111 billion since Russian President Vladimir Putin launched his grinding invasion more than 21 months ago, but Republicans are insisting on linking any more money to strict U.S.-Mexico border security changes that Democrats decry.
The White House is warning that if new money isn’t provided by year’s end it will have swift consequences for Ukraine’s capacity to hold its territory, let alone take back land captured by Russia.
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SOURCE: www.apnews.com
