British Foreign Secretary David Cameron urged the US Congress to approve a new military aid package for Ukraine, reports UNN with reference to the Voice of America.
Speaking at the Aspen Security Forum in Washington, Cameron said: "Putin's invasion of Ukraine was the worst example of one state invading, destroying the sovereignty of another state since the Second World War. And this is a huge challenge for us. I am not worried about the strength, unity, consensus and bravery of the Ukrainian people. I was there, I saw it. I am concerned that we will not do what we have to do."
Cameron reminded that the economies and GDP of all countries supporting Ukraine collectively outnumber Russia's by 30 to 1: "We just need to make it feel like it." Therefore, he added, the allies must make sure that they provide Ukraine with "weapons, economic support, moral support, diplomatic support" that can make a difference on the battlefield.
Answering a question about the concerns of some US politicians in the US that Europe is not doing enough, Cameron said that when it comes to combined economic and military support, Europe provides Kyiv with twice as much support as Washington.
That is why, Cameron said, Congress should approve additional funding for Ukraine: "We have to give this money to the Ukrainians. We have to support them and make sure that Putin loses, because if this money is not voted for, only two people will be smiling: one is Vladimir Putin in Russia and the other is Xi Jinping in Beijing."
Following his remarks, in a commentary to Voice of America's Ukrainian Service journalist Tetyana Vorozhko, the British official answered a question about whether the UK and EU, along with other allies, are ready to fill the gap in funding for military aid to Ukraine if the US does not pass a bill in time.
Cameron said: "The UK and other European allies will continue to support Ukraine. I was at the NATO summit in Brussels, and there was incredible support for Ukraine, and frankly, the NATO alliance has expanded, with Finland and Sweden joining. But obviously, America is a key partner, it is the world's largest economy, the largest defense player, a vital one. So let's continue to talk about what role it plays. One of my arguments is, yes, it's a lot of money, but in terms of what it provides, in terms of the support it provides to the brave Ukrainian people, it's the right investment for America."
In his opening remarks at the forum, the British official also explained: "The value of the money that you have invested (in helping Ukraine) is impressive. This is about 10% of your defense budget, used by the Ukrainians, which destroyed half of Russia's military stockpile before the (full-scale) war. If this is not a good investment, I don't know what is."
Recall
The US Senate on Wednesday blocked an emergency spending bill to provide billions of dollars in security assistance to Ukraine and Israel as Republicans insisted on their demands for stricter immigration controls on the US-Mexico border.