Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called on the United States to provide more funds to help his forces stand up to Russia and invited former US President Donald Trump to visit the country to get a first-hand look at the scope of the conflict.
Zelensky said U.S. troops could eventually be drawn into a larger European conflict with Russia if Washington does not increase its support.
"If Russia kills all of us, it will attack NATO countries and you will send your sons and daughters [to fight]," Zelensky said, according to a transcript of the interview on NBC's "Meet the Press" that aired last night.
US President Joe Biden, a Democrat, is pushing the US Congress to pass a $106 billion spending bill, with most of the money going to bolster Ukraine's defenses and the rest to be split between Israel, the Indo-Pacific and border security.
Instead, the Republican-led US House of Representatives presented its own funding plan. Last week, they passed a bill providing $14.3 billion in aid to Israel, but did not include an increase in aid to Ukraine.
U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer, the majority leader of the Democratic-controlled Senate, said he would not bring the House bill to a vote, and Biden vowed to veto it.
In the interview, Zelensky invited former US President Donald Trump, who is a Republican, to visit Ukraine and see the consequences of the conflict started by the Russian President Vladimir Putin in February 2022.
Trump, who is seeking re-election in 2024 and is his party's front-runner for the presidential nomination, has sharply criticized US support for Kiev and said if re-elected he could end the war "in 24 hours". "If he can come here, I will need ... 24 minutes to explain to President Trump that he cannot end the war. He cannot bring peace because of Putin". /BGNES
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