Russia-Ukraine war: Biden apologises to Zelensky for holdup of military assistance
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky with US President Joe Biden
US President Joe Biden on Friday (June 7) issued an unprecedented public apology to Ukraine for the holdup of American military assistancethat allowed Russia to continue making gains on the battlefield. Ukraine'sPresident Volodymyr Zelensky has appealed for bipartisan US support "like it was during World War II."
Speaking in Paris a day after they attended 80th anniversary events of D-Day in Normandy, Biden apologised to the Ukrainian people for the weeks of not knowing if more assistance would come while Republicans in the US Congress held up a $61 billion military aid package for Ukraine for six months.
"We are still in. Completely. Thoroughly," Biden added.
Russia-Ukraine war: What Zelensky wants from the US
Zelensky has called upon the Americans to support Ukraine's defence against the ongoing Russian offensive. The Ukrainian president in France also thanked US lawmakers for eventually coming together to approve the weapons package.
"It’s very important that in this unity, United States of America, all American people stay with Ukraine like it was during World War II,” Zelensky said.
"How the United States helped to save human lives, to save Europe. And we count on your continuing support in standing with us shoulder to shoulder."
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The United States is by far Kyiv’s biggest supplier of wartime support that has pitted the West directly against Russia.
Over two years into the war in Ukraine, Kyiv is now trying to fend off an intense Russian offensive in eastern areas of the country.
The Ukrainian pushback over Russian war-effort is focused on the border regions of Kharkiv and Donetsk.
The Russian offensive is going on amid Kyiv's consistent shortfall of ammunition and troops along the roughly 1,000-kilometre (620-mile) front line.
That shortfall in weaponry came after US military aid was held up in Congress for six months before Biden in April signed the $61 billion package into law.
(With inputs from agencies)