Volodymyr Zelensky has abruptly called off his meeting with the US Senate and House of Representatives as a battle over funding for Ukraine’s war in Russia threatens to boil over.
The Ukrainian President was set to meet virtually with US lawmakers on Tuesday, but these meetings were cancelled at the very last minute.
Zelensky had been due to hold a video conference with US senators to brief them on the war effort.
Senate leader Chuck Schumer did not explain why Zelensky cancelled the meetings, but the chamber’s top Democrat said he had a “last-minute” matter to attend to. No further detail was provided.
This comes just days after the White House warned the US is on the brink of running out of funds to help Kyiv fund its ongoing counteroffensive against Russia.
There has recently been a further push to get Ukraine extra funding for their military, but Congress is struggling to come up with a compromise on a spending package that would provide more aid.
Shalanda Young, the White House budget director, wrote in a letter to Republican and Democratic leaders: “We are out of money – and nearly out of time.” She said failing to give more aid to Ukraine before the end of the year would “kneecap” the nation’s efforts against Russia.
However, the Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, dismissed the efforts of the White House in providing Ukraine with funding.
He wrote on social media: “The Biden Administration has failed to substantively address any of my conference’s legitimate concerns about the lack of a clear strategy in Ukraine, a path to resolving the conflict, or a plan for adequately ensuring accountability for aid provided by American taxpayers.”
A top Ukrainian official had also warned of the loss at risk of the US did not continue its funding of the war effort against Russia.
Andriy Yermak, Zelensky’s chief of staff, said there is a “big risk” of Russia winning the war if the US does not provide more military aid.
He said in a speech at the US Institute of Peace in Washington DC: “It will be difficult to keep in [the] same positions and for the people to really survive.”
The ongoing funding row is reaching its peak just as fighting on the frontlines appears to have reached a stalemate, as Ukraine’s counter-offensive in the south slows down and soldiers struggle to maintain the strongholds they have established.
Congress has approved more than $110bn (£87bn) in military and economic aid to Ukraine since the war began in February 2022, and the Biden administration has warned for months that this would dry up very soon.
The Senate is currently negotiating a $106bn spending package that will include more aid for Ukraine, as well as military support for Israel and Taiwan, and increased funding for security on the US-Mexico border.
