America president Joe Biden First public apology on Friday Ukraine Congress has delayed U.S. military aid for months. Russia Gaining ground on the battlefield.
Biden met in Paris with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who called for continued bipartisan U.S. support “just as it was during World War II.”
The day before, the two attended the 80th anniversary ceremony of the Normandy Landing. Biden pointed out at the ceremony that the Allies who helped Europe free itself from Nazi Germany and today's efforts to support Ukraine in resisting the Russian invasion are common goals, and Zelensky's speech was met with warm applause.
“I apologize for not knowing for weeks what was going to happen with funding,” Biden said, referring to six months of delays by conservative Republicans in Congress to deliver $61 billion in military aid to Ukraine. Still, the Democratic president insisted the American people would stand by Ukraine for the long haul. “We still have Ukraine's back. Totally. Totally,” he said.
Biden’s apology and Zelenskiy’s request for unwavering U.S. support similar to that given to the Allies during World War II were a reminder that despite Biden’s continued assertions of unwavering U.S. support for Ukraine, the intransigence of congressional Republicans and the isolationist tendencies of American politics have exposed Ukraine’s vulnerability. Though it has gone unnoticed, the question of Donald Trump’s candidacy has loomed over the discussion as the former Republican president and presumptive presidential nominee has spoken positively of Russian President Vladimir Putin and raised concerns among Ukrainians that Trump will demand that Ukraine cede territory to end the conflict.
Zelensky called on all Americans to support Ukraine in resisting a Russian aggression and thanked lawmakers for finally coming together to approve the weapons program, which has allowed Ukraine to stop the Russian advance in recent weeks.
“It is very important that the United States stands united and that all Americans stand with Ukraine, just as they did during World War II,” Zelensky said. “The United States helped save lives and saved Europe. We look forward to your continued support and your continued support with us.”
The United States is by far Kiev's biggest wartime aid as Ukraine tries to fend off a fierce Russian offensive in the east of the country. The Russian offensive has been focused on the Kharkiv and Donetsk regions along the Ukrainian border, but Ukrainian officials say it could spread as Russia's massive military tries to press its advantage.
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The offensive sought to exploit Kiev's shortages of ammunition and soldiers along a front of about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles).
Zelenskiy has been frustrated by slow deliveries of promised Western weapons, and Biden has been hesitant to provide more for fear of angering Russian President Vladimir Putin, straining relations between the two countries.
Biden announced on Friday that the United States will provide Ukraine with about $225 million in military aid. U.S. officials said on Thursday that the latest package includes ammunition for the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS), mortar systems and a range of artillery shells.
Ukrainian militants attacked the partially occupied Luhansk region on Friday using U.S.-made ATACMS missiles, killing three people and injuring 35, local authorities in Moscow said.
Biden referred to the additional aid as money to “rebuild Ukraine’s electric grid” during his meeting with Zelenskiy, which aides said was a reference to additional air and missile defense systems in the new package.
Amid Russia's recent onslaught and Ukrainian forces' woes, some NATO allies, including the United States, softened their stance last week, saying they would allow Ukraine to conduct limited attacks inside Russia using weapons they had shipped to Kiev.
The move drew an angry response from the Kremlin, which warned that Europe's biggest conflict since World War II could spin out of control.
On Thursday, Biden and Zelensky attended D-Day commemorations in Normandy, northern France, along with European leaders who have supported Kyiv's efforts in the war. Biden pledged that “we will not abandon” Ukraine, drawing a direct connection between Europe's fight to liberate itself from Nazi rule and today's war against Russian aggression.
Ukraine portrays its fight with Kremlin forces as a clash between Western democratic freedoms and Russian tyranny, while Russia says it is defending itself against the threat of eastward expansion of the NATO military alliance.
Zelensky made a 20-minute speech on Friday to the National Assembly, the lower house of France's parliament, comparing the sacrifices made during World War II to the current fighting in France.
“This battle is at a crossroads,” Zelensky said. “At this moment we can write history the way we want. Or we will also become victims of history, as long as it suits our enemies.”
Zelensky spoke in Ukrainian but his speech was punctuated by applause and cheers from lawmakers, and drew a standing ovation when he said in French: “Dear France, thank you for standing with us as we defend life.”
Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron announced late Thursday that France will provide Mirage fighter jets to Ukraine.
Macron has been a staunch supporter of Ukraine and said in February that he would not “rule out” sending Western ground troops to Ukraine.
Zelensky held a day of talks in Paris, which began with a formal welcoming ceremony at the gold-domed Les Invalides monument, home to Napoleon's tomb.
Zelensky did not make a planned visit to the Nexter weapons manufacturer in Versailles that day, which produces the “Caesar” self-propelled howitzer, one of the weapons France is supplying to Kiev's army. Instead, he went to the French military headquarters with the defense manufacturer, where his delegation signed a defense agreement.
He will also meet with Macron at the Elysee Palace.
The purpose of Zelensky's trip is to draw public attention to Ukraine's plight, secure more military aid to resist a Russian invasion and lock in long-term Western support through a bilateral alliance.
France and Ukraine signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement in February this year. Since then, Zelensky has signed similar bilateral agreements with many European countries.
– Barbara Surk in Nice and Hanna Arhirova in Kiev, Ukraine also contributed.
