Blockade in the US Congress: Donald Trump is torpedoing US aid to Ukraine. This is apparently also about old problems with President Zelensky.
Washington, DC – Tanks, rocket launchers and, above all, ammunition: Ukraine is currently suffering massive losses on the front and urgently needs supplies of weapons. But help from the West is stalling. In the USA in particular, a billion-dollar package to finance military support for the Ukraine war is currently stuck in the House of Representatives. The Republicans are refusing to give their consent to US President Joe Biden. The hardliners around Donald Trump are primarily behind the blockade. Because the former president allegedly wants to pay back an old score for Ukrainian head of state Volodymyr Zelensky.
A former supporter of the ex-president has now expressed this suspicion. “Trump hates Ukraine,” Lev Parnas told the US magazine
Politico
. The Ukrainian-American businessman, who has been convicted in the US of fraud and campaign finance improprieties, once worked as an agent for Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani in Ukraine. But in his opinion, Trump “and the people around him believe that Ukraine was the cause of all the problems,” said Parnas.
Trump blocks arms aid: failed phone call with Zelensky is said to have fueled hatred of Ukraine
According to the media report, a phone call between Trump and Zelensky is the origin of the dispute. The conversation was one of the triggers for the first impeachment proceedings against the former US president. In 2019, Trump is said to have asked the Ukrainian president in the middle of the US election campaign to initiate investigations against his challenger Joe Biden and his son Hunter. The Trump team was certain that Biden had called for a Ukrainian prosecutor to be fired and threatened to block US funds. The prosecutor had previously launched a corruption investigation against a Ukrainian gas company for which Hunter Biden also worked.
A video should prove the claim. But Zelensky did nothing at first - and in doing so allegedly alienated Trump permanently. Bad luck for Trump: As part of a wiretapping operation against his old campaign manager Paul Manafort, the Trump-Zelenskyj conversation became known - and suddenly there was an accusation that Trump wanted to incite Ukraine to interfere in the US election campaign. “Now Trump hates Zelensky from the bottom of his heart,” Parnas said, according to
Politico
. “And Zelensky knows that.”
War against Russia: Ukraine urgently needs tanks and ammunition for the front
This is increasingly becoming a problem for Ukraine in the war against Russia. The defenders have recently suffered severe setbacks at the front. After more than two years of war, ammunition and weapons are running out. Most recently, the USA was the main supplier of supplies under the leadership of Trump's successor Biden. But that could change now. With the help of Republican hardliners in the US House of Representatives, Trump had a $95 billion package blocked in February to finance further support services. There have been arguments ever since.
US House of Representatives decides again on arms package for Ukraine
Next Saturday there will be another vote on arms aid in the US Congress. The chairman of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, announced this on Thursday (April 18), according to the
AFP
news agency . This time, four individual bills are to be presented - including support for Israel, Ukraine, Taiwan and US border protection. In February, all measures were combined in one package. While three of the resolutions now presented are probably undisputed, it remains unclear whether the Ukraine package will pass the chamber. While moderate Republicans are pushing for a yes vote, the hardliners in the party continue to stand in the way.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock interpreted the Republican spokesman's renewed presentation of the Ukraine package as a hopeful sign. This is an important signal “in stormy times,” she told the
dpa
news agency . But whether it will happen that way in the end. Resistance from the ranks of Trump supporters remains strong. Immediately after the bill became known, MP Marjorie Taylor Greene called on Johnson to resign. The chairman of the House of Representatives “plunged the Republican Party into chaos by pandering to the Democrats and adopting Biden’s agenda.” “Now he will finance wars abroad,” said Greene, who is close to former President Donald Trump.
End of the Ukraine war: Trump threatens Putin deal
In Ukraine, Trump's activities are being watched like a hawk. The prospect of Trump coming to power again in the US election in November is unlikely to please anyone in Kiev. Trump himself has recently made no secret of his stance on Ukraine. He recently let everyone know that Ukraine is actually part of Russia. He had previously boasted that he could end the war in Eastern Europe within 24 hours. No one in Ukraine doubted that Trump would push for a freeze on the conflict in negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin. (
jkf
)