Biden speaks with Zelensky ahead of prime-time address on Israel, Ukraine

International News | The Hill

President Biden on Thursday spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hours before delivering a prime-time address, during which he is expected to make the case for ongoing U.S. support for Israel and Ukraine as both allies are engaged in separate conflicts.

The White House said Biden and Zelensky spoke about America’s “continued commitment to supporting Ukraine amidst Russia’s brutal war,” while Zelensky elaborated on the conversation in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“During our call, President Biden sent a strong message of US support for Ukraine—for as long as it takes to prevail,” Zelensky wrote. “I am grateful to Mr. President, both parties of the US Congress, and the entire American people for their powerful assistance and leadership.”

“American leadership helps rally the world behind the common cause of protecting life and rules-based international order,” Zelensky added.

Biden will address the nation at 8 p.m. Thursday to discuss the U.S. response to Hamas’s terrorist attacks against Israel and Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine.

The address is a day after Biden visited Israel in a show of solidarity with the country following the Hamas attacks and amid concerns about a wider conflict in the Middle East.

It also comes as the White House prepares to send a supplemental funding request to Congress seeking aid for Israel and Ukraine. The total ask could reportedly amount to roughly $100 billion, also including funding for Taiwan and U.S. border security.

The Biden administration has moved military assets closer to the conflict in support of Israel and has sent munitions and interceptors for the Iron Dome defense system. Biden on Wednesday previewed that he would ask Congress for “an unprecedented support package for Israel’s defense.”

At the same time, Congress has provided billions of dollars in military and financial assistance to Ukraine in the roughly 20 months since Russia launched an unprovoked invasion in February 2022.

While there is bipartisan support for both Israel and Ukraine in Congress, some House Republicans have voiced opposition to continued aid for Ukraine, questioning how it benefits the U.S. and suggesting they would oppose tying funding for both nations together.

Jon Finer, the deputy national security adviser to Biden, said Thursday morning on MSNBC that Biden would use the speech to illustrate why continued U.S. support for Israel and Ukraine matters.

“This will be very much a message to the American people,” Finer said. “How those conflicts connect to our lives back here. How support from the American people and the Congress, frankly, is essential.”