U.S. defense leaders fawned over Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday during his visit to the Pentagon’s National Defense University (NDU), as he pitched for more U.S. taxpayer aid to Ukraine.
NDU President Air Force Lt. Gen. Michael Todd Plehn, praised Zelensky, calling it “indeed a high honor” to welcome Zelensky to the university.
“It is fitting that today’s address takes place at NDU, where we prepare the next cohort of national security leaders to understand and overcome current and future national security challenges in defense of our freedom and way of life,” he said.
He added, “Today Ukraine is fighting an existential struggle that bears witness to the importance of superb leadership, and unwavering moral and physical courage.”
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who spoke after Plehn, called Zelensky “living proof that a single person’s leadership can help rally an embattled democracy and inspire the free world and change the course of history.”
He called “Ukraine’s fight for freedom … one of the great causes of our time,” and America’s commitment to supporting Ukraine “unshakeable.”
“Ukraine matters profoundly to America’s security and to the trajectory of global security in the 21st century,” he asserted. “If we do not stand up to the Kremlin’s aggression today, if we do not deter other would-be aggressors, we will only invite more aggression, more bloodshed and more chaos,” he argued.
“America will be more secure if we stand up to Putin’s increasingly aggressive Russia. America will be more secure if we stand up for our bedrock values. And America will be more secure if we make it clear to would-be aggressors worldwide that they do not get to decide which countries live or which countries die,” he added.
Zelensky received a standing ovation from the audience, which included Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff C.Q. Brown as well as students, who are comprised of military officers, civilian officials, and senior enlisted military members.
Zelensky argued that Russian President Vladimir Putin was trying to reverse the shift to democracy in Eastern Europe after the 1989 fall of the Berlin Wall, not just try to take over Ukraine.
“Putin is attacking that big shift that happened back in 1989. He’s fighting Ukraine but really he is up against all of free, united Europe,” he said. “He’s wrecking everyday life in Ukraine and life in Ukrainian cities. But his real target is the freedom.”
He compared American troops fighting in World War II to American military support to Ukraine.
“Now it’s without American boots on European ground defending freedom against Russia’s aggression. American Bradleys, HIMARS, 155 caliber artillery, ATACMs, Patriots, F-16s can get the job done in Europe,” he said.
He warned that any delays in aid to Ukraine would inspire Putin.
“If there’s anyone inspired by unresolved issues on Capitol Hill it is Putin and his sick clique,” he said.
The Biden administration has requested $106 billion in supplemental funding that includes $61 billion for Ukrane, but only $14 billion for the U.S.-Mexico border, to hire additional border patrol, immigration judges, and asylum officers.
The $61 billion for Ukraine would come on top of the $113 billion that Congress approved for Ukraine in January 2023. The Biden administration says that money has nearly run out.
The Biden administration’s request is hitting an impasse on Capitol Hill, where Republicans say they will not approve more aid for Ukraine unless there’s significant reform on border policies.
According to the Associated Press, Republicans are calling for ending the current humanitarian parole program, monitoring systems such as ankle bracelets for those detained at the border and awaiting parole, banning people from applying for asylum in the U.S. if they passed through another country, reviving executive powers to allow a president to shut down border entries, and setting new guidelines to shut down the border if illegal crossings reach a certain limit.
Zelensky is scheduled to meet with President Biden and members of Congress on Tuesday. Some lawmakers say they are already a “no” on more aid, and one senator drew a hard line on more Ukraine aid without more serious measures at the border.
Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL) posted Monday on X:
With Zelensky coming to DC this week to ask for more money, I will continue to vote AGAINST sending your tax $$ to corrupt oligarchs in Ukraine for a proxy war that could have ended in ’22. A peace deal was on the table that and were both ready to sign, but Biden said NO.
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) posted Monday that Zelensky should visit the border and meet with parents whose children have been lost to fentanyl poisoning, due to the unsecured border:
Instead of coming to Washington, Zelensky should visit the Tucson and RGV sectors of our border. He should also visit NYC and other sanctuary cities where hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants are burdening residents. He should also meet with moms and dads who lost their child a to fentanyl poisoning. Securing our U.S. border must be the priority.
Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) said Monday on the War Room podcast hosted by Steve Bannon, “There are people who would cut social security — throwing our grandparents into poverty — so that one of Zelensky‘s ministers can buy a bigger yacht? Kiss my ass, Steve, it’s not happening.”
Vance also said, “Republicans have said you’re not getting another dime for Ukraine unless you do something serious about the border…Zelensky is here to badger…Senate Republicans into foregoing our negotiations on border security in order to write him another blank check.”
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