Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives does not change his position on aid to Ukraine after meeting with Zelenskyy

House Speaker Mike Johnson said he had a "good" meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy today, December 12, but remained firm in his position that the United States must first resolve the border issue before moving forward on the aid bill, CNN reports.

"From the very beginning, when I was handed the gavel (assumed the position - ed.), we needed clarity about what we were doing in Ukraine and how we would properly oversee the spending of precious taxpayer dollars, and we needed transformational changes at the border. So far, we've gotten neither," Johnson said, calling the border an "absolute disaster."

He added that "the first condition of any package of additional national security spending is our own national security." In addition, Johnson insisted that the White House had failed to articulate a clear strategy to help Ukraine win and criticized the Senate for "inaction."

The publication notes that he did not answer any questions from reporters after the roughly 30-minute meeting with Zelenskyy, which was their first face-to-face meeting.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, during his visit to the United States, spoke with senators and called for the approval of additional funding for Ukraine.

On December 7, the U.S. Senate blocked a vote on a draft law on additional financing of military aid to Ukraine.

The United States warned Ukraine that they have the opportunity to provide financial assistance for only a few weeks. There are no guarantees regarding future deliveries. The Administration of the President of the United States is deeply concerned that the amount of funding for the Armed Forces in the field of security will soon run out.

Meanwhile, today, December 12, the United States of America can announce the provision of USD 200 million in military aid to Ukraine.

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