Lord Cameron pleads with US politicians for extra funding for Ukraine
Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron has warned that Ukraine's success against Russia is vital for US and European security as he tried to encourage lawmakers across the States to approve "urgent" further assistance for the country.
In a joint press conference with US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, Lord Cameron said that he was not in there "to lecture anybody or tell anybody what to do", but was there as "a great friend and believer in [the US] and believer that it is profoundly in [US] interest and security and [its] future" to up its aid to Ukraine.
"It's just that I am so passionate about the importance of defending Ukraine against this aggression that I think it is absolutely the interest of our security that Putin fails in his illegal invasion," he said.
Lord Cameron added that it would be "good for US jobs" for the country to continue to back Ukraine with "the weapons that they need."
Mr Blinken used the speech as another opportunity to petition for the additional package of aid for Ukraine to pass through Congress.
“The supplemental budget request that President Biden has made of Congress is urgent and it’s imperative since the House is now back in session," he said.
“We look to see that brought before the house and to get a vote as quickly as possible.”
Lord Cameron also said that the US and UK's handling of the war in Ukraine was being closely watched around the world.
"There will be people in Tehran, in Pyong Yang, in Beijing, looking at how we stand by our allies, how we help them, how we stop this illegal and unprovoked aggression and working out whether we are committed, whether we're prepared to see it through," he said.
Lord Cameron is continuing to hold meetings with US officials and he was expected to ask for Ukraine to be given the resources needed to “hold the line” and “go on the offensive” in 2025, the Foreign Office said.
The meetings with Antony Blinken and other key figures across Congress included a request for an extra 60 billion US dollars (more than £47.5 billion) for Ukraine, the UK foreign office said.
He said that providing the aid package is "extremely good value for money" for the US and its allies. "This is an investment in United States security."
"Ukraine is not going to lose on want of morale," the British foreign secretary added.
The press conference came after Lord Cameron met with former President Donald Trump in Florida on Monday, in an attempt to shore up US support for Ukraine.
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He declined to give any details as to what was discussed in the conference on Tuesday, aside from saying it was a "private meeting" during which "important geopolitical issues" were discussed.
Lord Cameron said that the meeting was entirely in line with precedent, and that current UK governments typically meet with the leader of the opposition party in the US in the run-up to elections.
This series of meetings is the latest appeal by Lord Cameron to secure additional funding for Ukraine.
Earlier this year, he warned Congress not to show “the weakness displayed against Hitler” in the 1930s.
His previous comments drew the ire of right-wing congresswoman and staunch Trump ally Marjorie Taylor Greene, who told him to “kiss my ass” and “worry about his own country”.
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