No date for US aid to Ukraine

DELAY: WE WILL GET THAT MONEY OUT THE DOOR – AIDE

Atop US official said Washington could not predict when a vital $60 billion (about R1.1 trillion) military aid package for Ukraine would be passed in Congress, as Volodymyr Zelensky called for Western air defences after a Russian missile attack killed at least five.

A fresh round of aerial bombardments by both sides left civilians dead on Wednesday as strikes escalate in the third year of the war.

Kyiv’s army is facing ammunition shortages amid political wrangling in the US Congress that has raised uncertainty over the future of Western support.

Addressing the stalled aid Bill while on a visit to Kyiv on Wednesday, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said: “It has already taken too long. And I know that, you know that.

“I’m not going to make predictions about exactly when this will get done, but we are working to get it done as soon as possible... but I cannot make a specific prediction today,” he said.

Republicans in the US House of Representatives have been blocking a sweeping aid package since last year, with the funding caught up in domestic arguments over President Joe Biden’s immigration policies.

Washington is Ukraine’s most important military backer and has provided tens of billions of dollars in support since Moscow invaded in February 2022.

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Tuesday that he was shocked the package of aid has not yet been unlocked.

And on Wednesday, President Volodymyr Zelensky said the West had vital air defence systems that could save Ukrainian lives if delivered to his country.

Despite the aid delay, Sullivan said he was “confident” the impasse would be overcome.

“We will get that money out the door,” he said.

Both Moscow and Kyiv said civilians had been killed in fresh aerial barrages on Wednesday.

“Five people were killed by a Russia missile in Kharkiv today,” Zelensky said. –