New U.S.-supplied weapons and money are now on their way to Ukraine. Whether to provide additional military aid was a matter of debate for many months in the U.S. Congress. In the end, Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson stared down the most right-wing elements
U.S. President Joe Biden signed the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for Ukrainians (REPO) Act on April 24. Largely overshadowed in the media by the groundbreaking approval of $61 billion in aid for Ukraine that same day, the REPO Act is equally crucial. However, the REPO Act has not
A Ukrainian delegation led by Head of the Presidential Office Andriy Yermak held the fourth round of negotiations with the U.S. on the future bilateral security agreement on May 6, the Presidential Office reported.
Russia is currently holding a number of U.S. nationals on what are widely believed to be trumped up charges.
"This is an example of the kind of irresponsible rhetoric that we've seen from Russia in the past. It's completely inappropriate given the current security situation," Pentagon spokesperson Major General Pat Ryder told reporters.
U.S. representatives will not attend Vladimir Putin's inauguration on May 7, but Washington recognizes him as Russia's president, U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on May 6.
U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries singled out Republican congresswoman and conspiracy theorist Marjorie Taylor Greene, who he characterized as leading the faction.
Ukraine will look to launch a counteroffensive in 2025 with the support of the approved $61 billion aid package from the United States, as well as additional aid funding, U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told the Financial Times on May 4.
The United States is leading talks among the Group of Seven (G7) nations to develop a military aid package to Ukraine worth up to $50 billion, Bloomberg reported on May 3. The package would reportedly be funded by the profits generated by accrued interest on frozen Russian assets.
Washington wants to help Ukraine defend itself, but does not support strikes with U.S.-made weapons on Russian territory, U.S. Ambassador Bridget Brink said at a meeting with journalists on May 3, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL).
"That is why, for our part, we will continue to be concerned about Zelensky having everything he needs," U.S. national security spokesperson John Kirby said.
"Putin continues to believe that Russia is under threat and almost certainly assumes that a larger, better-equipped military will convey that opinion to Western and domestic audiences," Director of U.S. National Intelligence Avril Haines said.
"We are deeply concerned about this legislation - what it could do in terms of stifling dissent and free speech," U.S. national security spokesperson John Kirby said during a press briefing.
"Now that the supplemental passed Congress, it is naturally less of a salient issue," Politico wrote, citing one senior administration official.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze will not travel to the U.S. because he was invited under the condition that Tbilisi suspend discussions on the controversial "foreign agents" law in parliament, the Georgian Foreign Ministry said on May 2.
Moscow is likely to continue its "increasingly aggressive tactics" against Ukraine, including attacks on energy infrastructure, Director of U.S. National Intelligence Avril Haines said on May 2, according to Reuters.
Russia has been shipping refined petroleum to North Korea in volumes that may violate the U.N. Security Council's restrictions, U.S. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said on May 2, according to Reuters.
Ukraine is working on bilateral security agreements with seven more countries, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his evening address on May 1.
Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene has voiced a number of complaints against Speaker Mike Johnson but has particularly focused on his decision to allow a vote on aid for Ukraine.
Nikolay Grigorev, a 36-year-old Brooklyn resident, pleaded guilty to shipping components to companies affiliated with the Russian military. Co-defendants Nikita Arkhipov and Artem Oloviannikov remain at large, the statement read.
The U.S. Senate on April 30 voted unanimously to approve legislation banning imports of enriched uranium from Russia. The legislation will now advance to the White House, where U.S. President Joe Biden must sign the bill in order for it to become law.
The U.S. continues to encourage other countries to provide Ukraine with Patriot air defense systems, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said during a House Armed Services Committee hearing on April 30.
Speaking to Reuters, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said an overhaul of how international military aid was coordinated was required.
Israel did not say what would happen to the systems after they're retired but Ukraine has for months now been asking for more Patriots to bolster the country's air defenses.
The parties discussed the content of the agreement in detail, the progress of the negotiations, and the further plan of coordinated actions.
The delivery of military aid to Ukraine continues, but the White House cannot comment on the timing and volume of deliveries due to operational security concerns, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on April 29.
The news this past week was undoubtedly met with relief in Kyiv and with grief in the Kremlin. The U.S. Congress finally broke its six-month logjam and approved a new package of military aid for Ukraine (as well as for Israel and Taiwan). And the breakthrough came only days
Radoslaw Sikorski said he hoped that Donald Trump realized that opposition to helping Ukraine "is not actually popular in the U.S." and is harming his chances to be re-elected.
Russia could seize assets and property of U.S. individuals held in Russia if Washington confiscates Russian sovereign assets, Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, threatened on April 27.
Politico wrote that when Volodymyr Zelensky met Mike Johnson in the speaker's office last December, he provided him with a deadline for how long Ukraine could hold on without Washington's backing.
The finding does not indicate that Vladimir Putin is not guilty of Alexei Navalny's death, only that he did not order it at that moment, the Wall Street Journal wrote.
Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal announced during a government meeting that Ukraine has received approximately $12 billion in external financing since the beginning of the year to help address the budget deficit.
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