The Speaker of the US House Mike Johnson has demanded that Ukraine fire its ambassador to Washington, as a feud between the Republican Party and Volodymyr Zelensky escalates.
Johnson’s intervention comes after President Zelensky visited an arms factory in Scranton, Pennsylvania – the hometown of President Joe Biden in a key swing state – with several top Democrats.
In a public letter, the top Republican said the visit was “designed to help Democrats” and claimed it amounted to “election interference”.
The row has threatened to overshadow Zelensky’s meeting with President Joe Biden on Thursday, during which he will present a “plan for victory” in his country’s war with Russia.
Since his arrival to the US on Sunday, Zelensky has ramped up efforts to persuade the US and other allies to lend more support to Ukraine as it fends off Russian advances.
While details of his “victory” plan have been kept under wraps, the strategy is likely to contain pleas for further military and financial support, plus future security guarantees.
On Thursday, Biden announced that the US will send $7.9bn (£5.9bn) worth of military aid to Ukraine in a surge of assistance as his presidency nears its end.
The weapons package will be approved through presidential drawdown authority and will pull from existing Pentagon supplies to deliver the arms more quickly.
Congressional Republicans blocked the Biden administration’s $61bn military package for months earlier this year, before ultimately relenting and passing the legislation in April. Before that, arms supplies to Ukraine had dried up for several months.
The US has been the largest foreign donor to Ukraine, with $56bn provided for its defence to date.
Credit: bbc.com
