National security advisor makes secret trip to Kiev

President Biden’s top national security official made a secret trip to Kiev on Wednesday, as Ukrainian soldiers holding off Russian forces are running low on ammunition and US aid remains stuck in the Congressional deadlock.

Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser, met with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine and his senior officials “to reaffirm the United States’ unwavering commitment to Ukraine in its self-defense against Russia’s brutal invasion,” a spokeswoman for the national security agency said. safety, Adrienne Watson. “He emphasized the urgent need for the U.S. House of Representatives to pass the Supplemental National Security Treaty to address Ukraine’s critical battlefield needs.”

The secret trip showed the White House’s growing sense of urgency to pressure Congress to pass billions of dollars in aid to Ukraine, a financial package the Biden administration says the country needs to defend itself against Russia to defend.

The White House has tried, so far without success, to push House Republicans to support a $60 billion emergency spending plan for weapons for Ukraine and boost arms production in the United States.

With that funding lacking and future U.S. aid in limbo, the administration last week sent Ukraine a $300 million package that includes air defense interceptors, artillery shells, armor systems and an older version of the military’s longer-range missile systems known as ATACMS , included. But that package will likely only hold Russia back for a few weeks, U.S. officials say.

“Ukrainian troops have fought bravely, are fighting bravely during this war,” Mr. Sullivan said when the package was announced, “but they are now forced to ration their ammunition under pressure on multiple fronts.”

Mr. Sullivan’s visit came a day after Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III met with other Ukraine backers in Germany to determine how to maintain military support for Kiev.

“The struggle in Ukraine remains one of the great causes of our time,” Mr. Austin said.