Ukraine’s Zelensky appears increasingly embattled as U.S. backing wavers

KYIV — Anxiety is mounting in Ukraine as disagreements in Washington continue to stall billions of dollars of urgently needed wartime funding — aid that officials here say is crucial to keep the country running as the war with Russia grinds on.

The strain in the relationship between Kyiv and Washington comes as internal political divisions have resurfaced for President Volodymyr Zelensky, with fears over the potential gaps in funding feeding into other tensions in the capital. Relations between officials who have previously maintained a public appearance of unity are now openly fraying.

A delegation of top Ukrainian officials visited Washington this week to plead for more funding for both the military and the national budget — calls that appear to have gone unheard as Senate Republicans once again blocked the proposed aid, which has been tied to controversial border control measures.

The Senate no-show

Zelensky was due to virtually address a House and Senate briefing this week but canceled at the last minute as the meeting descended into a chaotic shouting match about U.S. border policy. His cancellation was highly unusual for a leader who has not typically turned down opportunities to advocate for Ukraine, prompting questions over whether he backed out on the advice of his Ukrainian colleagues or U.S. officials.

Oksana Markarova, Ukraine’s ambassador to the United States, told a Ukrainian television broadcast that “nothing catastrophic actually happened” and added that “precisely because they discussed not only Ukraine’s issues, but also internal issues, we did not participate.”

However, the difference between passing the billions in aid for Ukraine by the end of this year and doing so in January is critical for Ukraine, said Oleksandra Ustinova, a parliamentarian and head of the Holos party faction.

About a third of Ukraine’s budget comes from U.S. financial assistance, she said, and if that money doesn’t come through, Kyiv might not be able to pay basic salaries for doctors, first responders and others.

“It’s literally going to be a huge problem because if we do not survive as a state, we cannot win a war,” Ustinova said.

She also pointed to Ukraine’s dependence on U.S.-produced munitions for air defense systems. Ukrainians are expecting a difficult winter with Russia likely to again target its energy infrastructure with missiles and drones to leave people without power.

In her most recent trip to Washington, Ustinova sensed a growing fatigue in support for the war. She said she was often asked, “What is the plan?” and “How long will this take?”

“And what I’m telling them is that unfortunately the plan we have cannot be covered by the existing quantities of weapons,” she said. “It’s difficult for us to plan something when we’re lacking ammunition.”

On Wednesday, the State Department announced an additional $175 million in security assistance to Ukraine, including air defense munitions and ammunition, but warned that without congressional action “this will be one of the last security assistance packages we can provide to Ukraine.”
 

Some officials, though, remained optimistic that allies in Washington would step up before the end of the year. Yulia Svyrydenko, the first deputy prime minister and economy minister, who visited Washington last month, said she hopes the aid package will be announced by Christmas.

“We have repeatedly heard from our partners that they will continue to support us, and they have never broken their promise. We have no reason to doubt the reliability of our partnership,” she said.

There is still the challenge of staying at the forefront of allies’ minds, however. Tymofiy Mylovanov, head of the Kyiv School of Economics and a former government minister, said global attention shifting to Israel’s military operations in Gaza and Ukraine’s “overhyped” counteroffensive not meeting expectations have contributed to slumping support from the United States and the European Union.

“Will Ukraine fall because of this? No, unlikely,” Mylovanov said. “But will many more people die? Yes. Will that limit the ability of Ukraine to have capable troops? Yes. It’s all attritional. It’s a long war, obviously — now everyone has come to realize that, including me.”

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