Zelensky meets Biden after U.S. unveils Ukraine military aid surge

WASHINGTON — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met Joe Biden at the White House Thursday to present his wartime "victory plan," after the U.S. president announced an $8 billion surge in military aid for Kyiv's fight against Russia.

But Zelenskyy's visit was clouded by a blazing row with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump that underscored how November's U.S. election could upend the support that Kyiv receives from its biggest backer.

"Russia will not prevail. Ukraine will prevail, and we'll continue to stand by you every step of the way," Biden said as he hosted Zelenskyy in the Oval Office, after thanking him for presenting the so-called victory plan.

Dressed in his trademark military-style outfit, Zelenskyy replied that "we deeply appreciate that Ukraine and America have stood side by side."

Zelenskyy is looking to shore up support for his war effort at the same time as Biden tries to lock in aid for Ukraine, ahead of the white-knuckle vote pitting Biden's Vice President Kamala Harris against firebrand Trump.

The Democrat pledged nearly $8 billion in military aid in his announcement on Thursday, including $5.5 billion to be authorized before it expires at the end of the U.S. fiscal year on Monday.

Biden said in a statement that the "surge in security assistance for Ukraine" would "help Ukraine win this war."

Biden also announced Washington would provide Ukraine with the Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) long-range munition and called a summit of allies in Germany in October.

The White House however played down Ukraine's hopes that Zelenskyy's visit would achieve his long-held goal of getting permission to fire long-range Western-made missiles into Russian territory.

"I'm not expecting there to be any new announcements on this particular action or a decision coming out of this meeting," Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters.

Harris met Zelenskyy separately at the White House on Thursday.

Zelensky also visited the U.S. Congress -- where his government said he had also presented his victory plan -- and gave a defiant address at the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday.

But Zelensky's visit has prompted fresh nuclear saber rattling from Moscow, which has repeatedly warned the West against giving Ukraine long-range arms.

President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday announced plans to broaden Moscow's rules on the use of its atomic weaponry in the event of a "massive" air attack.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called the nuclear threat "totally irresponsible" while EU foreign policy spokesman Peter Stano said Putin was making a "gamble with his nuclear arsenal."

Kyiv faces an increasingly difficult battlefield situation two and a half years into Russia's invasion, with Russian forces continuing to push into eastern Ukraine.

But the U.S. presidential election means Washington's support now hangs on the balance -- and with Zelensky apparently at odds with Trump and the Republicans.

Trump had also been due to meet Zelenskyy during his U.S. visit, but their talks now appear to be on ice.

Republicans were livid after Zelensky visited an arms factory in Biden's hometown in the battleground state of Pennsylvania earlier this week, with House Speaker Mike Johnson calling for the Ukrainian ambassador to be sacked.

Zelensky also sparked fury in Republican ranks when he told The New Yorker magazine this week that Trump and his running mate J.D. Vance did not understand the war's complexity.

The United States has provided around $175 billion in both military and economic assistance to Ukraine during the war, despite frequent opposition from Republicans.

© 2024 AFP