The top diplomat of Ukraine stated on Monday that the support from Washington for Kyiv has not weakened, and downplayed the significance of a stopgap funding bill passed by the U.S. Congress that did not include aid to Ukraine.
Military assistance from the United States and other Western countries has been crucial for Ukraine in its fight against the full-scale invasion launched by Russia in February 2022.
In a press briefing, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba informed that Kyiv is currently engaged in talks with both Republicans and Democrats in the U.S. Congress, and considered the episode surrounding the stopgap bill that prevented a government shutdown as an “incident” rather than a systemic issue.
Kuleba stated, “We don’t feel that the U.S. support has been shattered… because the United States understands that what is at stake in Ukraine is much bigger than just Ukraine.” He conveyed these remarks while welcoming European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell before a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Kyiv.
“It’s about the stability and predictability of the world and therefore I believe we will be able to find necessary solutions,” Kuleba added.
The foreign minister raised the question of whether the events in the U.S. Congress over the weekend were “an incident or a system.”
“I think it was an incident,” he replied. “We have a very in-depth discussion with both parts of the Congress – Republicans and Democrats. And against the background of the potential shutdown, the decision was taken as it was.”
“But we are now working with both sides of the Congress to make sure that it does not repeat again under any circumstances,” Kuleba reassured.
Reporting by Pavel Polityuk and Tom Balmforth; editing by Timothy Heritage
Credit: The Star : News Feed
