“If we don’t get the help, we will lose the war.” That was the main message of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during his meetings at the Capitol, US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said.
On Thursday, Zelensky arrived on a one-day visit to Washington.
As AP notes, this time the Ukrainian leader must face skeptical Republicans who question the flow of US dollars that have kept his troops fighting Russian forces for 19 months.
Zelensky will meet US President Joe Biden at the White House and talk to US military leaders at the Pentagon. In the morning, the Ukrainian leader will stop on Capitol Hill to talk privately with the leaders of the Republicans and Democrats in the House of Representatives and the Senate, and in the evening he will make an address at the National Archives building in Washington.
In a Telegram post today, Zelensky stressed that his country needs more air defense systems after last night Russia carried out its biggest attack on Ukraine in weeks, Reuters reported.
“Last night, Russian terrorists launched another massive attack. In particular, on infrastructure. Most of the missiles were shot down. But only most of them. Not all,” he wrote.
“More air defense. More sanctions. More support for Ukrainian soldiers on the front line,” Zelensky stressed during his ongoing visit to the US, from where he said air defense systems would be on the agenda of the talks.
While the US president and most congressional leaders still express support for aid to Ukraine and Biden’s Democrats control the Senate, Zelensky will face tougher positions than when he visited Washington nine months ago.
As Ukraine’s military counteroffensive continues and congressional spending debates rage ahead of a possible government shutdown, more Republicans are questioning the billions of dollars Washington has sent to Kiev for military, economic and humanitarian needs.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, the US has sent about $113 billion in security and humanitarian aid to Zelensky’s government.
Officials from President Biden’s administration gave a classified briefing to Congress last night to push for an additional $24 billion, saying that if Russian President Vladimir Putin is allowed to take control of Ukraine and get to NATO’s border, the price to USA will be much higher.
Some Republicans, however, were not convinced.
“If there is any path to victory in Ukraine, I haven’t heard it today. And I’ve also heard that there will be no end to requests for funding,” Republican Senator Josh Hawley, an outspoken critic of aid to Ukraine, told reporters.
President Biden will announce a new $325 million military aid package for Ukraine, which is expected to include the second tranche of cluster munitions fired from 155mm howitzers.
“If we allow Ukraine to be dismembered, is the independence of any country secure?” Biden asked world leaders at the United Nations.
The US Congress easily approved aid to Ukraine when the Senate and House of Representatives were controlled by Democrats. Zelensky, who has become a staunch defender of his country, received a hero’s welcome when he addressed a joint session of Congress in December. Support in the Senate, from both Biden’s fellow Democrats and Republicans, remains strong.
“Our country has a primary interest in victory in Ukraine and European security,” Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said in a speech to the Senate yesterday in which he criticized Biden for moving too slowly to help Ukraine.
A solid majority of Americans support arming Ukraine to defend itself against Russia, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll.
But some Republicans, who narrowly took control of the House of Representatives in January, are questioning the wisdom of continuing to send funds to Kiev. About a third of House Republicans voted against a proposal to cut funding for Ukraine in July.
Republican Speaker of the US House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy did not organize a meeting today where Zelenskiy could present his case for continued aid to the full House of Representatives, only a small meeting with him and several other leaders. McCarthy, who as speaker of the House of Representatives controls what laws will be voted on, said Zelensky needed to convince him to give his support for continuing aid.
“Is Zelensky elected to Congress? Is he our president? I don’t have to commit to anything,” McCarthy told reporters two days ago.
“I have questions for him. Where is the accountability for the money we’ve already spent? What’s the plan to win? I think that’s what the American public wants to know,” he added.
