President Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy struggled to current a cohesive technique for the war-torn nation to fend off Russian invaders at the same time as they renewed their plea with Congress for tens of billions of {dollars} extra in assist.
The leaders huddled on the White House after Mr. Zelenskyy met senators and House Speaker Mike Johnson on Capitol Hill in a last-ditch effort to get the help accepted earlier than Congress’ Christmas break.
Despite the full-court press from Mr. Biden and his Ukrainian counterpart, the 2 appeared stumped when requested at a joint press convention to articulate an endgame for the struggle, which has raged since February 2022.
“We want to see Ukraine win the war, and as I’ve said before, winning means Ukraine is a sovereign, independent nation that can afford to defend itself and deter further aggression. That is our objective,” Mr. Biden stated, providing little perception on the right way to obtain that aim.
Mr. Zelenskyy, in the meantime, insisted there’s a “clear” plan, however stated it could be silly to discuss it publicly. He sternly rejected the suggestion of ceding some territory to Russia as a possible peace plan.
“That’s insane, to be honest,” Mr. Zelenskyy stated by a translator. “We have our folks there. We have our households there. We have our youngsters there. That’s part of Ukrainian society and we’re speaking about human beings.
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“It’s not a matter of territory — it’s a matter of life, of families, of children, of their histories,” he stated.
Mr. Zelenskyy’s go to to Washington did little to interrupt the impasse in Congress over Mr. Biden’s request for $60 billion in new assist for Ukraine’s struggle effort.
Mr. Biden sought to disgrace Senate Republicans into supporting his supplemental assist bundle. He famous {that a} Russian information outlet hailed their refusal to assist his push for added Ukraine funding and argued that their calls for are enjoying into Russian President Vladimir Putin’s palms.
“Congress needs to pass supplemental funding for Ukraine before they break for the holiday recess before they give Putin the greatest Christmas gift they could possibly give him,” he stated.
He additionally warned that Russia meant to bomb Ukraine’s electrical grid within the coming months, saying it might devastate the nation. He stated the deliberate assault is proof Congress must act directly.
The Ukraine assist is a part of a $110 billion bundle that features cash for Israel and Taiwan and cash to course of migrants crossing into the U.S. Republicans have demanded important modifications to Mr. Biden’s border insurance policies to clear the way in which for the help bundle.
SEE ALSO: Zelenskyy vows transparency of U.S. assist and to root out corruption, in plea to Congress
Mr. Zelenskyy made his case to lawmakers twice within the final three months, however he’s discovering Republicans more and more skeptical of his warnings that Ukraine is working out of weapons.
His cries for assist come at a grim time because the struggle has hit a stalemate; some Ukrainians are questioning Mr. Zelenskyy’s management.
While Mr. Zelenskyy was in Washington, Kyiv fell sufferer to a cyberattack that crushed cellphones and banks.
Senate Republicans voiced assist for Mr. Zelenskyy’s trigger however insisted the Biden administration overhaul border insurance policies to cease the report stream of migrants.
Sensing the lukewarm reception, Mr. Zelenskyy vowed to extend transparency and root out corruption throughout his assembly with lawmakers.
“[Zelenskyy] made it very clear, he said there would be no acceptance of any corruption whatsoever on the deployment of any American resources whatsoever within his country,” stated Sen. Mike Rounds, South Dakota Republican. “If we see corruption here, we go after the people that are causing the corruption. He is doing the same thing there.”
The pledge from Mr. Zelenskyy sought to quell longstanding considerations, notably amongst House Republicans, about the place the U.S. assist goes.
The U.S. has given Ukraine $111 billion to battle Russia. The White House Office of Management and Budget gave this accounting for the spending:
• $67 billion to purchase weapons and provides from the U.S.;
• $27 billion for non-military and non-humanitarian assist resembling financial and civilian safety help;
• $10 billion for humanitarian reduction; and
• $7 billion for different makes use of.
The European Union has supplied roughly $90 billion.
The probabilities of Ukraine receiving a major increase of U.S. assist earlier than the tip of the 12 months at the moment are slim to none. Senate negotiations for a border deal to release the help bundle have stalled and lawmakers plan to depart Washington by Friday for a two-week trip.
Still, Mr. Biden insisted there may be robust bipartisan assist for Ukraine amongst lawmakers.
“A small number of Republicans who don’t want to support Ukraine, but they don’t speak for the majority of even Republicans, in my view,” Mr. Biden stated. “We’re in negotiations to get the funding we need, not to promise — not making promises, but hopeful we can get there, and I think we can.”
Senate Republicans and Democrats, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and White House staffers met for roughly two hours Tuesday afternoon on Capitol Hill concerning the southern border.
Earlier Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer, New York Democrat, stated the Senate hadn’t given up on passing Ukrainian assist earlier than the tip of the 12 months.
“We’re still trying. We are trying very, very hard to get this done,” he instructed reporters.
Mr. Zelenskyy didn’t stroll away fully empty-handed.
Mr. Biden introduced that he accepted a further $200 million navy assist bundle for Ukraine.
The weapons and gear shall be taken from Pentagon stockpiles and embrace extra ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, high-speed anti-radiation missiles, anti-armor programs, artillery rounds, missile demolition munitions and 4 million rounds of small-arms ammunition.
It comes by presidential drawdown authority, letting Mr. Biden pull weapons from U.S. stockpiles and ship them to different nations at struggle. State Department officers stated it was one of many final safety help packages the U.S. might present to Ukraine as a result of it comes underneath beforehand directed drawdowns.
Including the most recent bundle, the U.S. has roughly $4.4 billion value of weapons in its stockpile that Mr. Biden can faucet for Ukraine. Last week, he accepted a separate drawdown value about $175 million.
