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Live updates: Russia-Ukraine war, over 100 injured in air attack on Ukraine
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US President Joe Biden said Russia’s latest aerial assault on Ukraine — the largest since the full-scale invasion began — serves as a reminder of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s intentions in the country.
“It is a stark reminder to the world that, after nearly two years of this devastating war, Putin’s objective remains unchanged. He seeks to obliterate Ukraine and subjugate its people. He must be stopped,” Biden said in a statement Friday.
He used the opportunity to call again on Congress to pass additional assistance to Ukraine, saying US-provided defense systems had intercepted many of the Russian drones and missiles launched Friday.
“The American people can be proud of the lives we have helped to save and the support we have given Ukraine as it defends its people, its freedom, and its independence,” he wrote. “But unless Congress takes urgent action in the new year, we will not be able to continue sending the weapons and vital air defense systems Ukraine needs to protect its people.”
Biden has requested nearly $60 billion in new assistance for Ukraine, but the funding has stalled amid negotiations over toughening US immigration rules.
Lawmakers left Washington without agreement on the new funding.
Biden sought in his statement to underscore the global ramifications of Ukraine’s fight: “The stakes of this fight extend far beyond Ukraine,” he wrote. “They affect the entirety of the NATO Alliance, the security of Europe, and the future of the Transatlantic relationship.”
Missile over Poland: US national security adviser Jake Sullivan told the Polish secretary of state on Friday that the US stands in solidarity as it investigates a missile that temporarily entered its airspace during Russia’s onslaught.
Sullivan “pledged technical assistance as needed and assured his Polish counterpart that President Biden is following this issue closely,” a White House readout said.
The Polish military says that in the early hours of Friday “an unidentified airborne object” entered Polish airspace from Ukrainian territory. “All indications” signal that it was a Russian missile, according to Poland’s most senior military officer.
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