Volodymyr Zelensky missile plea fails to ignite in Washington

Joe Biden promised an increase in US support for Kyiv, including nearly $US8bn ($11.6bn) in military aid and new munitions.

Joe Biden meets Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office on Thursday. Picture: AFP

President Volodymyr Zelensky will return to Ukraine from Washington without winning permission to use long-range Western missiles to strike deep into Russia.

Mr Zelensky met President Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris separately at the White House to make a personal plea for lifting restrictions on British-supplied Storm Shadow missiles or US-made ATACMS.

Western countries have allowed Kyiv to use the missiles only to hit Russian forces in border regions.

Mr Zelensky was also due to unveil his plan for victory in the 2½ -year-old war.

However, White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said no shift in Washington’s stance on the use of the long-range missiles was expected to follow the talks, which came less than 24 hours after President Vladimir Putin warned that a large conventional air attack on Russia by Western-backed Ukraine could trigger a nuclear response.

“Russia will not prevail. Ukraine will prevail and we’ll continue to stand by you every step of the way,” Mr Biden said after meeting Mr Zelensky in the Oval Office.

Beforehand, he promised an increase in US support for Kyiv, including nearly $US8bn ($11.6bn) in military aid and new munitions. “I am announcing a surge in security assistance for Ukraine and a series of additional actions to help Ukraine win this war,” he said.

The new aid package includes the first US deliveries of a precision-guided glide bomb called the Joint Standoff Weapon.

The missiles have a range of about 110km and will make it easier for Ukraine to hit Russian forces at a distance. They are designed to be fired by F-16 warplanes, increasing their range.

While the JSOWs will bolster Ukraine’s strike capabilities, they will not allow it to destroy Russian military bases far from the border, something that Kyiv says is necessary to save the lives of civilians.

Mr Biden, who leaves office in January, also announced an additional air defence battery and more Patriot missiles to defend Ukrainian cities, as well as an expansion of US training for Ukrainian F-16 pilots.

Mr Zelensky visited Capitol Hill earlier, where he was met by a bipartisan group of senators who support Kyiv.

Republican senator Lindsey Graham said Zelensky had asked for the green light for long-range strikes to “bring Putin to the table” and strengthen Ukraine’s position before any peace talks.

“If we don’t make that fundamental choice this week, I think the outcome for Ukraine is dire,” Senator Graham said.

Neither Mr Biden nor Ms Harris made any mention of Mr Putin’s nuclear threats.

However, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken described them as “totally irresponsible”. He called on China, which has cautioned Russia against using nuclear weapons, to reiterate to Moscow that “rattling the nuclear sabre” was unacceptable.

The results of November’s US presidential elections seem set to determine the outcome of the war, if not the future of Ukraine.

Donald Trump, the Republican candidate, has escalated his attacks on the Ukrainian leader in recent days, saying Mr Zelensky should have “given up a little bit” of his country to appease Moscow. The former US president has vowed to end American military support for Ukraine should he win.

Mr Zelensky said in April that Ukraine would have “no chance of winning” without US military assistance. The US has provided about $US175bn in military and economic aid to Ukraine during the war, despite opposition from many Republicans.

“Ukraine is gone!” Mr Trump said at a rally in North Carolina this week. “If we made a bad deal, it would have been much better. (Ukraine) would have given up a little bit and everybody would be living.”

He accused Democrats of planning to deploy American troops to Ukraine but gave no evidence to support his claim.

Mr Trump was to meet Mr Zelensky at Trump Tower in New York late on Friday.

THE TIMES