According to The Wall Street Journal, the pressure on the U.S. Senate to reach an agreement to combine the funding for Ukraine with the changes to U.S. immigration policy is increasing. Senators themselves expressed the urgent need to find a way to compromise. Joe Biden has invited Volodymyr Zelensky to visit the United States on December 12. Last week, while addressing Republicans, the U.S. president emphasised that Americans must not let Putin win. “If Putin seizes Ukraine, he won’t stop there,” Biden said at the time, adding that “we will end up facing what we don’t want to face and what we don’t have to face yet: the U.S. troops fighting against the Russians”.
“On Sunday, before a decisive week of fateful negotiations, senators asserted that they are rushing to reach an agreement on a $110,5 billion emergency aid package because assistance to Ukraine in its fight against Russian invasion is running out, while the number of illegal border crossings on the southern U.S. border has reached a record high,” The Wall Street Journal reports.
According to the White House announcement, at the Biden-Zelensky meeting scheduled for Tuesday, December 12, the two presidents will “discuss Ukraine’s most immediate needs and the significance of the continued U.S. support at this critical moment.”
The Wall Street Journal also quotes the NBC interview of the Democratic Senator Chris Murphy, a key negotiator for Democrats on immigration law changes: “This has been, perhaps, one of the most dangerous moments I’ve ever encountered in American politics… If we don’t solve this problem within the next few weeks, Vladimir Putin will have the opportunity to cross the Ukrainian front line and advance towards Kyiv, threatening all of Europe”.
At the same time, Republican Senator James Lankford, a key Republican congressman focusing on immigration law changes, which were added to the Ukraine aid package bill, emphasises that the situation with the increasing number of illegal border crossings also cannot be ignored. “We can’t just sit still and say we’re not going to do anything,” he noted in his comment to CBS.
The issue of aid to Ukraine has become entangled in the complex political discussions in Washington, particularly those regarding the legal regulations for asylum seekers in the United States. It seemed that there was no end to lengthy discussions, and there may not be any progress. Last week, as reported by The Wall Street Journal, these discussions got a breath of fresh air when the White House representatives informed Republican negotiators that Biden is happy to discuss significant concessions to limit access to asylum acquisition and, consequently, strengthen border security. “At the same time, the daily number of crossings of the southern border in recent days has soared, with over 10,000 illegal crossings recorded on December 6 alone,” The Wall Street Journal cites people familiar with these figures. Republican actions may have consequences for Joe Biden and his party, where a group led by former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders strongly opposes any concessions.
The New York Times reported that Volodymyr Zelensky will also have the opportunity to meet with some American legislators face-to-face on the morning of December 12—during a closed-door meeting with senators. The meeting has been organised by Senator Chuck Schumer (Democratic majority leader) and Senator Mitch McConnell, the leader of Republicans. The Ukrainian president will also meet Mike Johnson, the newly elected Speaker of the House of Representatives.
