U.S. President Joe Biden has invited congressional leaders to the White House for talks on January 17 on continuing aid for Ukraine, the White House said after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged the West to be unified in its backing of Ukraine in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Biden will host House of Representatives and Senate leaders "to discuss the critical importance of his national security supplemental request," White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on January 16. Jean-Pierre said Biden would underscore "how important it is to get moving on that."
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Biden's request for $60 billion in aid for Ukraine has stalled in Congress as lawmakers negotiate a deal that would tie the release of the funds to U.S. border security. The United States has been unable to agree on fresh aid since September, and White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said last week that Washington's military assistance for Ukraine has now dried up.
Zelenskiy spoke on January 16 at the World Economic Forum, outlining Ukraine's needs to beef up its air defense capabilities in talks with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and national-security adviser Jake Sullivan.
"We must gain air superiority for Ukraine," Zelenskiy said. "Just as we gained superiority in the Black Sea, we can do it. This will allow progress on the ground.... Partners know what is needed and in what quantity," Zelenskiy said.
Zelenskiy said earlier that his meeting with Blinken had been "meaningful," adding that further defense cooperation with the United States was discussed.
"Air defense and long-range capabilities are particularly important for our country, Zelenskiy said on Telegram.
In talks with NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg at Davos, Zelenskiy said on X, formerly Twitter, that he also emphasized the need to further strengthen Ukraine's air defense in his talks with the NATO chief.
Zelenskiy added that he and Stoltenberg discussed the preparations for a crucial NATO summit in July in Washington.
"I emphasized that Ukraine anticipates decisions that will bring its membership in the Alliance closer," Zelenskiy said.
After a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Zelenskiy wrote on X that as Ukraine moves closer to the practical start of EU accession negotiations, he and von der Leyen "agreed to take another step forward and start the screening of Ukraine's legislation."
Before his speech, von der Leyen warned Davos attendees that while Ukraine can "prevail" in the war, "we must continue to empower their resistance."
"Ukrainians need predictable financing throughout 2024 and beyond. They need a sufficient and sustained supply of weapons to defend Ukraine and regain its rightful territory," she added.
The White House said late on January 16 that Biden spoke by phone with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and they "coordinated on their countries' ongoing steadfast support to Ukraine in the face of Russia's war of aggression."
Ukraine has been subjected to a series of unusually intense Russian air strikes since the start of the year that has put its air defense under massive pressure amid dwindling stocks of ammunition and equipment.
At least 16 people were injured by Russian strikes on the city of Kharkiv late on January 16, the Governor Oleh Synyehubov said Russian strikes hit residential buildings in the city center. Two of the injured people were in serious condition.
He added that according to preliminary information, the city was hit by two S-300 missiles. Kharkiv lies just 30 kilometers from the border with Russia and has come under frequent bombardment since Russia invaded in February 2022.
Mayor Ihor Terekhov said that the strikes were aimed at the city center and hit "exactly where there is no military infrastructure and precisely where there is residential construction."