US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is worried about Ukraine’s future in the war against Russia.
At the same time as a new aid package is stopped in the US Congress, the lack of weapons and artillery continues to characterize Ukraine.
– Our allies continue to stand up, and so must the United States, he said during a press conference according to Ukrainian Pravda.
On Tuesday, a meeting was held between US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and about 50 allies who provide military support to Ukraine, reports Pravda.
– Ukraine’s survival is in danger, he said during a press conference after the meeting.
The Speaker’s proposal: Design support packages as loans
Austin opened the meeting by pledging US support for military action against Russia, but did not specify how the funding would look.
The proposal for a new support package for Ukraine corresponding to approximately 625 billion Swedish kronor has been stopped by the Republican majority in the House of Representatives. Pravda writes that Speaker Mike Johnson has agreed to lift the block, but then wants to see significant changes. Among other things, he wants the support to be designed as a loan or loan promise.
A US defense source said to be high-ranking tells Pravda that the US bears responsibility for Ukraine’s current situation.
– I think our allies are very aware of our funding situation, and the Ukrainians more than anyone else, because of the shortfalls that result from us not being able to supply them.
“Serious consequences”
Briton Ariah Ben-Yehudah has been volunteering with the Ukrainian International Legion since full-scale war broke out in 2022. Now he has been forced to give up after being injured in a Russian attack for the fourth time. He warns that the situation at the front is “worse than reported”.
– If the US does not act soon, it will have serious consequences for Ukraine, he says Kyiv Post.
Any new bill must receive enough votes in both the US House of Representatives and the Senate. On Tuesday last week, Joe Biden managed to circumvent the stop through an extraordinary support package of just over three billion Swedish kronor. The following day, the EU announced that it had agreed on a new support package worth just over SEK 55 billion to provide Ukraine with military equipment.
Several countries have also joined a Czech shell project that will supply Ukraine with hundreds of thousands of artillery shells – something the country has been lacking. Now Pravda reports that Lithuania has also joined and donated almost SEK 400 million to the project.