President Joe Biden will ask Congress to fund a new Ukraine aid package Thursday, two sources familiar with the matter told NBC News, as the West steps up its support for Kyiv and embraces a more ambitious goal of weakening Russia in spite of intensifying threats and action from the Kremlin.
Biden’s White House remarks will come after Russian President Vladimir Putin warned of “lightning fast” retaliation against any countries that interfere in Ukraine, where Russian forces increased their attacks on the country’s east in search of a military breakthrough.
The Kremlin’s move to cut off gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria, two NATO members, left Europe to confront the prospect of an energy crisis as the conflict increasingly extends into a broader standoff with Russia over economic sanctions and military shipments.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Moscow of using gas and trade as weapons, even as his efforts to rally support for his country’s defensive cause appeared to be succeeding despite Putin’s efforts to weaken the West’s resolve. Zelenskyy will hold talks with United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres in Kyiv on Thursday, after Guterres met with Putin earlier this week to promote diplomacy and efforts to evacuate civilians trapped in Mariupol.
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