‘We are closely watching’: Russia’s (tad) offhand reply to Biden-Zelensky meet
Russia is watching US president Joe Biden and Volodymyr Zelensky’s meeting “very attentively”, the Kremlin said while remaining largely lukewarm about the outcome of the Ukrainian president’s visit to Washington. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that “tens of billions of dollars” already provided by Washington to Kyiv had failed to turn the tide of war.
Russia-Ukraine War: Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky.(AFP)
Further aid would similarly fail to do so, he said.
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Zelensky’s authority was being undermined by failures in war so far, he asserted.
“It is important for everyone to understand: the tens of billions of dollars pumped into Ukraine did not help it gain success on the battlefield,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said as per news agency Reuters, adding, “The tens of billions of dollars that Ukraine wants to be pumped with are also headed for the same fiasco.”
Volodymyr Zelensky will arrive on Capitol Hill as the Russian invasion grinds into a third year while US funding hangs in balance. The visit comes as Joe Biden’s request for an additional USD 110 billion aid package for Ukraine and Israel is at serious risk of collapse in the US Congress. Republicans have insisted on strict US-Mexico border security changes.
The White House has said that the time was right for Zelensky’s trip to Washington as Joe Biden pushes lawmakers to approve the aid package. The Ukrainian leader will privately meet senators and new US House Speaker Mike Johnson, Associated Press reported. He will then talk with Joe Biden at the White House .
The White House also pointed to newly declassified intelligence that shows Ukraine has inflicted heavy losses on Russia in recent fighting along the Avdiivka-Novopavlivka axis ahead of the meeting.
“Russia is determined to press forward with its offensive despite its losses. It is more critical now than ever that we maintain our support for Ukraine so they can continue to hold the line and regain their territory,” White House National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said.
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