Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky implored the US to approve more military funding for his country on Sunday, warning that Ukraine would “lose the war” without it.
Zelensky predicted that if Ukraine falls, Russia will move to invade “other states” next.
Republicans in Congress have held up further military payments to Ukraine for months, pointing to the well over $100 billion the US has already sent.
“It is necessary to specifically tell Congress that if Congress does not help Ukraine, Ukraine will lose the war,” Zelensky said in a video statement on Sunday.
“If Ukraine loses the war, other states will be attacked,” he added.
Zelensky’s plea comes as Russia continues to launch waves of missile and drone attacks into Ukraine, killing civilians and soldiers alike.
Members of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus and their allies are drawing lines in the sand ahead of what is expected to be an intense inter-GOP battle over additional aid for Ukraine.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., put forward a funding plan late last month, but Freedom Caucus Chair Rep. Bob Good, R-Va., is calling for any funding to Ukraine to be balanced with spending cuts elsewhere and for it to be paired with US border policy changes.
“We cannot continue to borrow and spend money we don’t have for wars overseas while failing to protect Americans from the Biden border invasion here at home,” Good told Fox News Digital last week. “At a bare minimum, any package for military aid to Ukraine should be fully offset and must include H.R. 2 with performance metrics to secure our own border.”
If the Ukraine funding legislation passes the House, it faces a clearer path through the Senate.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has already established his support for additional help for Ukraine.
