Biden and Zelenskyy to Meet at White House in Crucial Step to Secure Aid Package for Ukraine

Washington, DC – On Tuesday, President Joe Biden will be meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House, followed by a joint news conference. This meeting comes as Congress appears to have stalled on efforts to pass a measure funding aid for Ukraine, which includes a $61 billion military aid package.

This apparent intensification of the situation follows Ukraine’s counteroffensive earlier this year, which failed to recapture significant amounts of occupied territory. The aid deal has stalled amid disagreements over U.S. immigration policies and growing Republican skepticism about providing Ukraine with more military help.

Last week, a Democratic bill with billions in aid for both Ukraine and Israel failed to pass the Senate, as Republicans and Democrats failed to reach an agreement on border security and immigration policy that Republicans had made a condition for supporting the aid. In response, President Biden pleaded with Congress to pass aid for Ukraine as it battles Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aggression.

Washington has committed far more military aid to Ukraine than any other country. Around the same time last year, Zelenskyy received a hero’s welcome as he addressed Congress on his first trip outside wartime Ukraine as Republicans were preparing to take control of the House.

The meeting between President Biden and President Zelenskyy is expected to be a crucial step in securing the aid package for Ukraine. It remains to be seen if the two leaders will be able to reach an agreement that will satisfy both sides and allow the aid package to be approved.