Following a recent uptick in Russian strikes, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged US House Speaker Mike Johnson on Thursday to assist in providing “essential” military assistance to Kyiv.
Since last year, a $60 billion support package has been stuck in the US Congress, delaying the supply of vital arms and ammunition to the front-line Ukrainian military.
“I briefed Speaker Johnson on the battlefield situation, specifically the dramatic increase in Russia’s air terror,” Zelensky said he told Johnson during a call on Thursday.
“In this situation, quick passage of US aid to Ukraine by Congress is vital,” he said in a readout of the call posted on Telegram.
The biggest aerial assault Moscow has carried out on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure during the two-year conflict occurred last Friday.
According to Zelensky, Russia attacked Ukrainian land with 190 missiles, 140 drones, and 700 guided aerial bombs last week. Over a million homes lost power as a result of the attacks, and the biggest hydroelectric power plant in the nation was shut down.
Since the Russian invasion in February 2022, Washington has been Kyiv’s main military ally.
However, disagreements among the Republican party regarding President Joe Biden’s immigration policy have delayed the most recent significant aid package.
Zelensky has repeatedly said delays to aid cost Ukrainian lives and territory on the battlefield.
Ukrainian soldiers have been forced to ration ammunition amid uncertainty over when the crucial next deliveries will arrive.
In the interim, Moscow has recaptured the upper hand in combat. When Ukrainian fighters took control of Avdiivka, a frontline town near the Russian-held bastion of Donetsk, last month, they achieved their first notable territorial gain in nine months.
As Speaker of the House of Representatives, Johnson decides which measures are put to a vote. Last week, he stated he was considering “number of avenues” for aid to Ukraine.
The Senate has already given its approval to the $60 billion plan.
