90% of the latest US aid package hasn’t reached Ukraine, Zelenskyy says
Zelenskyy said Ukraine was waiting for most of its aid package promised by the US.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy questioned why much of the latest US aid package had yet to reach Ukraine, saying it had so far received 10%.
The $61 billion package was approved in April after monthslong delays and pushback from House Republicans.
On Wednesday, Zelenskyy made clear his disappointment.
“You do your job. You count on reserves, you count on special brigades, you count on such equipment. And if you get 10% of all the package [that] has already been voted on… it’s not funny,” Zelenskyy told journalists in a video posted to Telegram on Wednesday, per Reuters.
Zelenskyy didn’t say what sort of timeline he hoped for.
He said other pledges had gone unfulfilled — saying NATO countries had said they would provide six or seven air defense systems by the beginning of September but had yet to send them all.
In April, when the bill passed, President Joe Biden issued a statement calling the aid “urgent” but didn’t give specifics on when it would arrive.
The US is Ukraine’s largest single donor. It has given more than $64.1 billion since Russia invaded in 2022, the Department of State said in a statement last week.
The US’ most recent aid to Ukraine, valued at $425 million, was announced on October 16. It drew on the same $61 billion pool that was passed earlier in the year.
That package included munitions, military vehicles, grenades, and training.
Some in NATO have voiced similar frustration with the rate aid is delivered. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said in August that Ukraine may have to wait until 2027 to receive some Western aid.
He said the timescale was proof of Western countries falling short.
Ukraine is facing continued advances from Russian troops and the prospect of North Korean soldiers entering the fight.
The US said last week it had evidence to suggest that thousands of members of North Korea’s military were being sent to Russian military bases to train ahead of possible deployment.
Representatives for the US Department of Defense and Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
