WASHINGTON – Ukrainian troops on the front lines of the Russian invasion are anxiously awaiting a decision from U.S. lawmakers on sending additional military aid, Kiev President Volodymyr Zelensky told an audience here on Monday.
“Each of you here understands what it means for a soldier to wait for ammunition, to wait weeks, months without knowing if any kind of support will come,” Zelensky said in a room of military leaders and students at the National Defense University, about two years ago. years. -miles and a half from the United States Capitol.
“Each of you with command experience knows what it means when instead of advancing you are simply observing, waiting for armor or equipment while your enemy is satisfied and preparing for assaults,” he added.
Zelensky spoke at the Defense Department school a day before his scheduled meeting with President Biden and House Speaker Mike Johnson in a last-ditch effort to secure additional funding for his country before members of Congress take the end of the year vacation.
Wearing an army green sweatshirt that read, “I am Ukrainian,” Zelensky lamented the stalemate in Congress over a supplemental aid package requested by President Biden in October that would spend $61.4 billion on new assistance for Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks to the press after meeting with International Monetary Fund (IMF) Director Kristalina Georgieva at IMF headquarters in Washington, DC, on December 11, 2023. AFP via Getty Images
The package, which also includes approximately $44.5 billion in support for Israel, Taiwan and the US southern border, was rejected for the third time by the Senate last week.
“Any of you who has a son or a daughter in [a] The combat zone simply wouldn’t understand if they were told that protecting lives can wait because there’s a little more debate,” Zelensky said. “Let me be frank with you, friends: If there is anyone inspired by the unresolved problems on Capitol Hill, it is Putin and his sick clique.”
The 45-year-old also previewed the talking points he is expected to discuss with US leaders on Tuesday.
“There are two key things – trust and security – that are crucial for the internal stability of countries and for international peace,” he said. “The United States and all free nations must have confidence in themselves and their leadership strengths so that dictatorships doubt themselves and their power to undermine freedom.
Ukrainian troops are awaiting a decision from US lawmakers on sending additional military aid. AP
“When the free world doubts, that is when dictatorships celebrate, and their most dangerous ambitions [take place]”, he added,
Noting that his speech came on the 82nd anniversary of the United States’ entry into World War II against Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, Zelensky said his troops are the “first front” in what he believes is “ the beginning of [Russian President Vladimir Putin’s] “global war against freedom.”
“The honored sons and daughters of America, just like those here now, had to join the continental war in Europe,” he said. “And now, without American boots on European soil defending freedom against Russian aggression, American Bradleys, HIMARS, .155 caliber artillery, ATACMS and F-16s can get the job done in Europe exactly as global freedom needs it.”
Zelensky said his troops have been waiting for help for months without knowing if any support will arrive. AFP via Getty Images
“The current generation of free nations should learn from past battles in Europe that the destruction spread by dictatorship is too greedy and must be stopped from the beginning,” he added.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who introduced Zelensky, noted that the Ukrainian leader’s speech was planned with short notice, as the trip to DC was not publicly announced until Sunday.
“Students here will study the example of Ukraine,” Austin said. “This is an institution that teaches leadership. And Mr. President, you are living proof that one person’s leadership can help restore a embattled democracy, inspire the free world, and change the course of history.”
“Make no mistake,” he added, “the United States’ commitment to supporting Ukraine against Russian aggression is unwavering.”
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Source: vtt.edu.vn