Biden urges US allies to ‘coordinate’ support for Ukraine
Washington, The Gulf Observer: President Joe Biden called key allies to “coordinate” support for Ukraine, the White House said, amid concerns in Western capitals after Republican hardliners derailed US funding for Kiev.
Biden spoke with the leaders of Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, Poland, Romania, Britain, and of the EU and NATO, along with the foreign minister of France, the White House said.
Biden had been under mounting pressure to calm shaken allies after an 11th-hour deal in the US Congress to avoid a government funding shutdown on Saturday contained no new aid for war-torn Ukraine.
Democrat Biden has called for Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to rush through new aid, saying that US support for Kiev as it battles Russia’s invasion could not be interrupted “under any circumstances”.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he was visiting Ukrainian troops near the eastern front line, where Russian forces have been pressuring Kiev’s army in areas they recaptured recently.
Ukraine launched a highly-anticipated counteroffensive against Russian positions in the south and east but progress has been slow and Russian forces are also pushing back in the northeast.
“Today we are visiting our brigades performing combat missions in one of the hottest areas (of the frontline) — Kupiansk-Lyman,” Zelenskyy said in a statement on social media.
