North American President Joe Biden on Tuesday sought to reassure allies of the United States of America (US) about the continuation of North American support to Ukraine, which will depend on the outcome of the budget talks that are being held at least . , chaotic.
Biden held a conference call to “coordinate continued assistance to Ukraine,” the White House (US Presidency) said in a brief statement.
According to the same source, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio took part. Kishida.
The Secretary General of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Western Defense Bloc), Jens Stoltenberg, Polish President Andrzej Duda, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, also took telephone calls. participate in the meeting.
Stoltenberg said on the social network X (formerly Twitter) that it had been a “good conversation” and added: ‘We promise to support Ukraine for as long as necessary’.
For her part, White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre assured on Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin was “mistaken” when he gambled on Western fatigue.
He added that the United States would “soon” announce new aid to the Ukrainian armed forces, which is provided for in a budget already approved by Congress.
At the same time, Joe Biden maintains pressure on the national political stage, having written on social network “keep your word and ensure approval of the necessary aid to Ukraine so that it can defend itself”.
“We are the ‘indispensable nation’, let us act like it”the 80-year-old Democrat wrote, using terminology dear to former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.
The North American Congress, composed of the Senate (Upper House), currently with a Democratic majority, and the House of Representatives, has about a month and a half to approve an annual budget that must include a new and large amount of money to finance support. military and humanitarian support to Ukraine.
So far, the White House estimates that $24 billion (22.9 billion euros) will be needed to continue supporting the Ukrainian war effort.
The North American federal state should actually have had a new budget since October 1, but the very high tensions within the Republican majority in the House of Representatives made any vote impossible.
The situation became even more complicated on Monday, when a congressman from the far right wing of the Republican Party introduced a motion aimed at impeaching the conservative leader of the House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy.
The Biden administration has so far declined to say exactly when funds already approved by Congress for aid to Ukraine will be exhausted.
The United States heads the Western coalition created to confront Russia and is also – by far – the largest provider of aid to Ukraine in the form of heavy and advanced weapons.
Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, recently valued the amount of military aid to Kiev since the Russian invasion in February 2022 at $47 billion (44.9 billion euros). 1.5 billion dollars (between 950 million and 1.4 billion euros)’ channeled through the World Bank and ten billion dollars (9.5 billion euros) in humanitarian aid.
The Kiel Institute for the World Economy, a German institute that monitors aid to Ukraine, estimates that the United States has contributed just under $75 billion (71.6 billion euros) so far, putting the country among the worst in absolute terms largest donor in the world. and the 13th largest, relative to gross domestic product (0.3%).
Source: DN
