Zelensky presses US for new aid package

Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelensky has again travelled to the United States in a bid to obtain additional assistance in his war against Russia. The Ukrainian leader is scheduled to meet with his US counterpart, Joe Biden, as well as members of Congress in Washington. 

According to National Security Council spokesman John Kirby, Biden will assure Zelensky that the White House stands firm in its request to provide billions in additional aid to Ukraine.

However, congressional approval of Ukraine's funding is one of the main challenges Zelensky will face during his time in Washington.

For months now, as is also the case in some European countries such as Hungary, several members of Congress have expressed their refusal to continue funding Ukraine, which will be in its second year of war next February.

The United States has been Ukraine's main supporter during the Russian invasion. Since the beginning of the war, Washington has provided Kiev with more than $44 billion in security assistance, which is roughly half of the military aid Ukraine has received, according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy.

I met with leaders of US defense companies and expressed my gratitude to every American worker who manufactures weapons that help us safeguard our people and defend our land.

I appreciated all American companies that attended last week's US-Ukraine defense industry conference.… pic.twitter.com/B82hyH2BUZ

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) December 11, 2023

"It is unlikely that other countries will be able to make up the shortfall if Washington withdraws," notes Ian Lovett in The Wall Street Journal. Also, "many US weapons systems already in Ukraine need US munitions", he adds. 

Before meeting with Biden and addressing Congress, Zelensky spoke at the National Defense University in Washington, noting that Russian President Vladimir Putin is seeing his "dreams come true" because of delays in assistance to Kiev.

"Each of you here understands what it means for a soldier to wait for ammunition: to wait weeks, months, not knowing if any support will arrive," said the Ukrainian president, who said that freedom was weakening when "support for freedom fighters diminishes".

Zelensky received a standing ovation after his speech at the National University in Washington.

The Ukrainian President declared:
'We won't surrender. We know what to do, and you can count on Ukraine. Similarly, we hope to count on you. It's crucial that politics doesn't betray… pic.twitter.com/5GRjlqnvP3

— Maria Drutska 🇺🇦 (@maria_drutska) December 12, 2023

In the United States, Zelensky also met with the head of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva. Hours before the meeting, the IMF executive board approved a $900 million fund for Ukraine from its $15.6 billion lending programme.

Georgieva stressed that Ukraine's economy has proved resilient despite the Russian invasion in February 2022 and the "enormous social and economic costs" it posed. Kiev has received more than $68.5 billion in budget support since the war began, Finance Ministry data compiled by Reuters show.

I met with the IMF Managing Director @KGeorgieva.

We discussed the review of the long-term financing program for Ukraine and further cooperation for Ukraine's stability and strengthening. I welcome the important decision to allocate a $900 million tranche.

I thanked IMF for… pic.twitter.com/FPtwlx3RPh

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) December 11, 2023

Zelensky's visit to the US, the third since the war began in February 2022, comes at a time of stalemate in the conflict. The summer counteroffensive failed to achieve significant victories, despite heavy armaments and high casualties, leaving Russia with almost 20 per cent of Ukraine's territory. 

Zelensky also faces great domestic pressure, as his political rivals have begun to openly criticise him while polls show that his public support has declined from 91% in May to 76% in October, according to the International Institute of Sociology in Kiev.