US tries to reassure allies about Ukraine aid package
(Baonghean.vn)- President Joe Biden on October 3 called key allies to reassure them of continued US support for Ukraine, even as growing political turmoil in Washington puts the new military aid policy in more jeopardy.
Mr Biden has spoken to Western leaders to ease tensions after new aid for Ukraine was excluded from a deal in the US Congress to avoid a government shutdown last weekend amid opposition from hardline Republicans.
But Democrats—President Biden—hopes of quickly passing a new Ukraine bill were dashed when those same hardliners ousted Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in a rebellion.
Amid the chaos that threatens to stymie any legislative work, President Biden has called for the swift election of a new House speaker to confront “the urgent challenges facing our country,” the White House said.
The US president earlier called the leaders of key allies Britain, Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, Poland, Romania, the heads of the EU and NATO as well as the French foreign minister.
“President Biden reaffirmed the United States' commitment to supporting Ukraine for as long as needed as it works to protect its sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the White House said.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby warned that if new aid is not approved, existing funds to help Ukraine fight Russian President Vladimir Putin's war will last only "a few months."
“Time is not our friend,” Kirby told reporters. The lack of funding would not only hurt Ukraine on the battlefield but also “make Putin believe he can wait and do nothing until we lose.”
The Pentagon said it could continue to meet Ukraine’s military needs “for a little while longer” with previously authorized assistance. Allies rushed to follow the call to present a united front with the United States, which is by far the largest aid provider to Ukraine.
Russia has pounced on the chaos in Washington, with the Kremlin claiming Western war fatigue will increase due to uncertainty over US support for Ukraine.
Biden is concerned that America's global role is under threat, declaring on social media that "we are the indispensable nation in the world - let's act like America".
The issue of aid to Ukraine now appears poised to become hostage to US politics just over a year before the election, with the far-right Republican Party's ouster of House Speaker McCarthy putting the end to aid to Ukraine at the top of the agenda.
The turmoil came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited Washington in September to try to convince the United States to continue its support. Opposition from hard-line Republicans has spread more than a year and a half after Russia launched its military campaign, including among some voters. An ABC/Washington Post poll released on September 24 found that 41% of respondents said the United States was doing too much to support Ukraine, up from 33% in February and just 14% in April last year.
Skepticism about Western solidarity also increased after Slovakia elected populist leader Robert Fico - who has pledged to end military support for Ukraine - as prime minister over the weekend./.
