Ukrainian President personally presses US House Speaker on aid

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he had a private phone call with US House Speaker Mike Johnson, reiterating his call for the US Congress to provide additional aid to Kiev, and directly briefed the top Republican lawmaker on the “battlefield situation”.

In a post on X/Twitter on March 28, Mr. Zelensky said he had spoken to and thanked Mr. Johnson for his and the US's important support for Ukraine since the full-scale conflict with Russia began.

The Ukrainian leader also described briefing the US House Speaker on Russia’s increased missile, bomb and drone attacks in recent weeks since funding for Ukraine’s defense stalled in the legislature in Washington DC.

“In the last week alone, 190 missiles, 140 drones and 700 guided bombs were launched at Ukrainian cities and communities. Ukraine’s largest hydroelectric power plant has been shut down,” Zelensky said. “In this context, it is important that Congress quickly approves US aid to Ukraine. We acknowledge that there are different views in the House of Representatives on how to proceed, but it is important to keep the issue of aid to Ukraine as a unifying factor.”

The call between Mr. Zelensky and Mr. Johnson came as the U.S. Congress prepared to tackle the contentious issue of sending additional aid to Ukraine, which has been a headache for lawmakers for months as a growing number of House Republicans object.

World - Ukrainian President personally presses US House Speaker on aid — Zelensky's post on X/Twitter, March 28, 2024

Leaving Washington DC last week for a long holiday break, Mr Johnson said the House would make the issue its next order of business when Congress returns to Capitol Hill in mid-April. But it remains unclear how the top Republican lawmaker will approach the thorny issue.

The Ukrainian president’s tweet on March 28 may have had a purpose: to increase pressure on the US House Speaker and deepen the feeling that Mr. Johnson is the main reason why the US Congress has so far delayed the aid bill.

Mr Johnson has yet to make a public statement about the call. The Independent has contacted the Speaker’s office for comment.

In fact, Mr. Johnson has been at the center of a heated debate over aid to Ukraine since he took office in the US House of Representatives last October.

A month earlier, he had joined most House Republicans in opposing $300 million in new military aid to Kiev, but since assuming the mantle of House speaker, he has repeatedly said he wants to support America’s ally in defending itself against Russian attacks.

However, Mr Johnson refused to consider a foreign aid package passed by the US Senate last month. The package, which included $60 billion for Ukraine, was passed with the support of 22 Republican senators, including Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Mr McConnell have both called on Mr Johnson to continue the House legislative process on the bill that has passed the Senate.

But there’s a problem: Mr. Johnson is facing a “rebellion” from one of the most right-wing members of the Republican Party. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a loyalist to former President Donald Trump, threatened in January to introduce a motion to remove Mr. Johnson from office if the House passed a bill that included aid to Ukraine.

While it is unclear whether Ms. Greene will actually act on her threat, the warning to Mr. Johnson remains: Ignoring the demands of the Conservatives around this bill could cost him dearly .

Minh Duc (According to The Hill, The Independent)

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