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Zelensky welcomes US House approval of Ukraine aid, urges passage into law
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday welcomed the approval of $61 billion in aid for Ukraine by the US House of Representatives but urged Washington to quickly turn the bill into law and proceed with the actual transfer of weapons, saying long-range arms and air defence systems were top priorities.
Issued on: 21/04/2024 – 16:31
1 min
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visit the frontline positions in the Donetsk region on April 19, 2024.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visits front-line positions in the Donetsk region on April 19, 2024. © Imago/APA images via Reuters
By:
NEWS WIRES
In an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press”, Zelensky said the passage of the bill would send a powerful message to Russia that Washington stands by Kyiv and that it would not be “a second Afghanistan”.
“I think this support will really strengthen the armed forces of Ukraine and we will have a chance for victory,” Zelensky said through a translator. But he repeatedly urged US lawmakers to take swift action to pass the bill in the Senate.
“We really need to get this to the final point. We need to get it approved by the Senate … so that we get some tangible assistance for the soldiers on the front line as soon as possible, not in another six months,” Zelensky said.
The US House, with broad bipartisan support, passed a $95 billion legislative package providing security assistance to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. Aid for Ukraine had been held up for months.
Almost 26 months since its 2022 full-scale invasion, Russia says its forces are slowly advancing in eastern Ukraine and have ramped up bombardments of cities and towns behind the front lines amid a slowdown in Western military assistance.
The US legislation now proceeds to the Democratic-majority Senate, which passed a similar measure more than two months ago.
Political leaders from Democratic President Joe Biden to top Senate Republican Mitch McConnell had been urging embattled Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson to bring it up for a vote.
The Senate is set to begin considering the House-passed bill on Tuesday, with some preliminary votes that afternoon.
Final passage is expected sometime next week, which would clear the way for Biden to sign it into law.
(Reuters)
