Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Monday said that Ukrainian officials are talking to Republicans and Democrats to shore up continued support for Kyiv in its defensive war against Russia so assistance is not axed again “under any circumstances.”
“We have a very in-depth discussion with both parts of the Congress, Republicans and Democrats and against the background of a potential shutdown in the United States the decision was taken as it was,” Kuleba said during a press conference in Kyiv, referring to a bipartisan funding deal that passed the House and Senate on Saturday only after more than $6 billion in funding for Ukraine was removed.
“But we’re now working with both sides of the congress to make sure it does not repeat again, under any circumstances.”
Kuleba continued that Ukraine doesn’t “feel that the U.S. support has been shattered,” adding he believes Kyiv’s supporters in Washington understand Ukraine’s fight against Russian aggression is about “stability and predictability of the world.”
A majority of lawmakers in both the House and Senate are supportive of continued U.S. military and economic assistance to Ukraine, but efforts to pass President Biden’s request of $24 billion in additional aid have stalled in the face of obstructionist efforts by Republican detractors.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), facing a revolt in his conference over assistance for Ukraine, managed to narrowly avert a government shutdown on Saturday by supporting a short-term government funding bill once it was stripped of Ukraine aid.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, meanwhile, vowed his country would keep fighting for as long as it takes.
“We are driving out the occupiers. And we will continue to do so,” he said in an address to honor the Day of Defenders of Ukraine. “We became stronger, hardened, better equipped and armed. And we will continue to do so. We came through a difficult winter, we endure missile attacks and terror. And we will continue to do so,” he said.
Read the full report at TheHill.com.
