Biden Tries to Reassure Allies of Continued US Support for Ukraine after Congress Drops Aid Request

US President Joe Biden makes a statement about the stopgap government funding bill passed by the US House and Senate to avert a government shutdown at the White House in Washington, US, October 1, 2023. (Reuters)
US President Joe Biden makes a statement about the stopgap government funding bill passed by the US House and Senate to avert a government shutdown at the White House in Washington, US, October 1, 2023. (Reuters)
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Biden Tries to Reassure Allies of Continued US Support for Ukraine after Congress Drops Aid Request

US President Joe Biden makes a statement about the stopgap government funding bill passed by the US House and Senate to avert a government shutdown at the White House in Washington, US, October 1, 2023. (Reuters)
US President Joe Biden makes a statement about the stopgap government funding bill passed by the US House and Senate to avert a government shutdown at the White House in Washington, US, October 1, 2023. (Reuters)

President Joe Biden spoke Tuesday with US allies and partners to coordinate future support for Ukraine after Congress passed — and he signed — legislation that kept the US government funded but dropped his request for billions of dollars to help Ukraine in its fight against Russia.

The White House announced that Biden had convened the call but provided no details of the discussion.

Poland's President Andrzej Duda said afterward that Biden had assured the group of continued US support for Ukraine and of his strong conviction that Congress will not walk away.

“Everyone took the floor. The main subject was Ukraine, the situation in Ukraine," Duda said at a news conference in Kielce, Poland. “President Joe Biden began with telling us about the situation in the US and what is the real political situation around Ukraine. He assured us that there is backing for the continuing support for Ukraine, first of all for the military support. He said that he will get that backing in the Congress.”

Duda said Biden assured the leaders that support for Ukraine in the US Congress is much broader than media reports suggest. He said Biden called on the participants to continue their support for Ukraine and that everyone assured him that they would.

"All of us, leaders, we are determined to continue supporting Ukraine,” said Duda, whose country shares a border with Ukraine.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on social media that it was a “Good call with #NATO leaders hosted by @POTUS,” using the acronym for president of the United States. “As Russia continues its brutal war, we are all committed to supporting #Ukraine for as long as it takes,” Stoltenberg pledged.

Others joining Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the call were the leaders of Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, Romania, Britain, the European Commission and the European Council. France’s foreign minister also participated, the White House said. French President Emmanuel Macron was not available due to scheduling issues, according to a US administration official.

Duda said the leaders also discussed plans for rebuilding Ukraine.

"Everyone was saying that this is the next step that will be necessary and for which preparations should begin now,” he said.

Biden had sought in public comments on Sunday, hours after he signed a bill to fund US government operations through mid-November, to reassure allies of continued US financial support for Ukraine's effort to counter Russia's military aggression. But he warned that time was running out and urged Congress to negotiate a new aid package quickly.

“We cannot under any circumstances allow America’s support for Ukraine to be interrupted,” Biden said at the White House after Congress averted a government shutdown by passing a short-term funding bill late Saturday that stripped out assistance for Ukraine.

“We have time, not much time, and there’s an overwhelming sense of urgency,” Biden said, noting that funding in the bill will run out in mid-November.

“The vast majority of both parties — Democrats and Republicans, Senate and House — support helping Ukraine and the brutal aggression that is being thrust upon them by Russia,” Biden said. “Stop playing games, get this done.’’

But many lawmakers acknowledge that winning approval for Ukraine assistance in Congress is growing as Republican resistance to the aid has gained momentum as the war continues.

While Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has begun a process to potentially consider legislation providing additional Ukraine aid, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., faces a more difficult task in keeping the commitment he made over the objections of nearly half of his GOP majority.

McCarthy signaled over the weekend that he supports linking new Ukraine funding to security improvements at the US border with Mexico.

The latest actions in Congress signal a gradual shift in the unwavering support that the United States has so far pledged to Ukraine in its fight against Russia, and is one of the clearest examples yet of the Republican Party’s movement toward a more isolationist stance.

The exclusion of money for Ukraine came little more than a week after lawmakers met in the Capitol with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. He sought to assure them that his military was winning the war, but stressed that additional assistance would be crucial.

Voting in the House last week pointed to the potential trouble ahead. Nearly half of House Republicans voted to cut from a defense spending bill $300 million to train Ukrainian soldiers and buy weapons. The money later was approved separately, but opponents of Ukraine support celebrated their growing numbers.

The US has approved four rounds of aid to Ukraine in response to Russia’s invasion, totaling about $113 billion, with some of that money going toward replenishment of US military equipment that was sent to the front lines. In August, Biden called on Congress to provide for an additional $24 billion.



Islamabad Locked Down ahead of Protests Seeking ex-PM Imran Khan's Release

Police officers stand guard near their vehicles during a protest by Pakistani Shiite Muslims against an attack on passenger vehicles in Kurram, in Dera Ismail Khan District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan, 22 November 2024. EPA/SAOOD REHMAN
Police officers stand guard near their vehicles during a protest by Pakistani Shiite Muslims against an attack on passenger vehicles in Kurram, in Dera Ismail Khan District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan, 22 November 2024. EPA/SAOOD REHMAN
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Islamabad Locked Down ahead of Protests Seeking ex-PM Imran Khan's Release

Police officers stand guard near their vehicles during a protest by Pakistani Shiite Muslims against an attack on passenger vehicles in Kurram, in Dera Ismail Khan District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan, 22 November 2024. EPA/SAOOD REHMAN
Police officers stand guard near their vehicles during a protest by Pakistani Shiite Muslims against an attack on passenger vehicles in Kurram, in Dera Ismail Khan District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan, 22 November 2024. EPA/SAOOD REHMAN

Pakistan's capital was put under a security lockdown on Sunday ahead of protests by supporters of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan calling for his release.
Highways leading to Islamabad through which supporters of Khan, led by members of his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, are expected to approach the city and gather near the parliament, have been blocked.
Most major roads of the city have also been blocked by the government with shipping containers and large contingents of police and paramilitary personnel have been deployed in riot gear, while mobile phone services have been suspended.
Gatherings of any sort have been banned under legal provisions, the Islamabad police said in a statement.
Global internet watchdog NetBlocks said on X, formerly known as Twitter, that live metrics showed WhatsApp messaging services had been restricted ahead of the protests.
A key Khan aid, Ali Amin Gandapur, who is the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and is expected to lead the largest convoy into Islamabad, called on people to gather near the entrance of the city's red zone, known as "D Chowk".
Islamabad's red zone houses the country's parliament building, important government installations, as well as embassies and foreign institutions' offices.
"Khan has called on us to remain there till all our demands are met," he said in a video message on Saturday.
The PTI's demands include the release of all its leaders, including Khan, as well as the resignation of the current government due to what it says was a rigged election this year.
Khan has been in jail since August last year and, since being voted out of power by parliament in 2022, faces a number of charges ranging from corruption to instigation of violence.
He and his party deny all the charges.
"These constant protests are destroying the economy and creating instability ... we want the political leadership to sit together and resolve these matters," Muhammad Asif, 35, a resident of Islamabad said in front of a closed market.
The last protest in Islamabad by PTI in early October turned violent with one policeman killed, dozens of security personnel injured and protesters arrested. Both sides accused the other of instigating the clashes.