In addition to the front lines in the Donbas, the battle for Ukraine’s future is being fought out in Western capitals.
A vital supplemental aid package totalling tens of billions of dollars is stalled in the U.S. Congress, held up mainly by House Republicans.
Meanwhile, in Europe, a 50-billion-Euro assistance package from the EU is being blocked by Hungarian leader Viktor Orban.
The delays come as Ukraine braces for a brutal winter of Russian assaults amid looming weapons and ammunition shortages.
So what can we expect going forward into 2024? And what is driving the complex politics of defense assistance to Ukraine on both sides of the Atlantic? And what does it mean for Ukraine’s fight for survival and independence? On The Power Vertical Podcast this week, host Brian Whitmore breaks it all down with Mark Temnycky, a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center and a regular contributor to The Hill, the EUobserver, and Euronews.
SHOW NOTES
The audio opening the podcast was from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s speech on January 19 2024. The translation is as follows:
“The current madness of Russian leaders brings a period of uncertainty and danger to every nation in the world. Increasingly, the world hears and realizes that more wars may be ahead. But we have the strength to stop it. We have the strength to defend normal life. The world has this strength. And this strength must work now to stop Russia.”
The audio opening the second segment was from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s speech on January 18, 2024. The translation is as follows:
“We continue our communication with partners on sanctions against Russia – their full effect. All of our diplomatic representatives must step up their efforts to ensure that our partners respond more actively to every instance of Russia’s circumvention of sanctions. This is not just an abstract question – it’s about how a terrorist state produces weapons, including missiles.”
Mark Temnycky’s published work can be accessed here, here, here, and here.
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