Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists have been trading blame for the shelling of a bread line in eastern Ukraine, with regional officials saying seven people were killed. The attack occurred near Chernihiv while witnesses described hearing several explosions.
On March 16, at the US Capitol Visitor Center Congressional Auditorium in Washington, DC, US House minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, third left, Representative Steny Hoyer, center, and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi listen as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky virtually addresses the US Congress. (AFP/Getty Images/Sarahbeth Maney)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s statements to legislators were “very amazing,” according to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who added that they’re “grateful” he expressed gratitude for help.
She accepted his repeated requests for the West to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine, but she gave no more details.
“(We’re) delighted that he thanked the US for all we’ve done and what President Biden has done,” she added. “The demand for a no-fly zone, but if that isn’t possible, there are other options, such as associating with our own democratic issues. It was extremely impressive, but the clip was overpowering with the children and the Russians’ savagery; it’s their war crimes right in front of our eyes “She went on to say, referring to a video he showed of strikes in Ukraine.
She said that the House of Representatives would be working on legislation in the coming days, but she did not clarify and did not respond to any more inquiries.
Mitch McConnell, the Senate Minority Leader, hailed Zelensky’s speech to Congress “very powerful” and stated “the message to President Biden is that he has to pick up his game.” This was substantially in line with Republican senators’ reactions after the speech, as opposed to Democrats, who lauded Biden’s handling as successful and forward-thinking.
“We need to support Ukraine, give them whatever they need to fight this battle,” GOP Rep. Mike McCaul, a ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said of the film aired during Zelensky’s speech, “and the video we saw was extremely evocative of Nazi Germany.” And we shall be judged by history. What exactly did you do? When the bombings began, what did you do? “Blood, children, what did you do when the maternity hospitals were bombarded and the pregnant ladies were carried out?”
“If we don’t act now and act firmly, history will judge us,” McCaul added. “Now is not the time for political hyperbole; now is the moment to rally the country behind Ukraine against one of the most wicked forces we’ve seen since my father’s fight – Adolf Hitler in World War II.”
Sen. Roy Blunt, a member of the Republican leadership, told CNN that establishing a no-fly zone concerns him.
“I mean, every time you put American pilots and aircraft in the sky with Russian pilots and planes in the sky, you’re really taking a risk that we’re going to engage at a level that I don’t believe we’re prepared for,” Blunt said.
Senator Mark Kelly, a Democrat, had reservations about enforcing a no-fly zone, and he questioned if deploying aircraft to Ukraine would be a good use of resources. New sanctions and more defensive equipment, such as surface-to-air missiles, are on the table. Kelly, who is seeking re-election, also called Russian President Vladimir Putin a “war criminal,” saying that US Vice President Joe Biden should “absolutely” call him that. He responded, “Call it what it is.”
Anti-tank, anti-aircraft, and Stinger missiles, according to Democratic Sen. Mark Warner, head of the Senate Intelligence Committee, are “far more effective tools.”
Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, co-chair of the Congressional Ukraine Caucus and a former FBI agent stationed in Kyiv, is in favor of a restricted no-fly zone. Alternative than shooting down aircraft, he continued, there are other methods to enforce it, such as using technologies like electro-magnetic pulse and sonar radar.
Fitzpatrick said, “We have to support a humanitarian no-fly zone.” “The only other option is to massacre innocent people,” says the author.
“President Biden has to make a choice TODAY: either grant Ukraine access to the planes and anti-aircraft defense systems it needs to protect itself, or implement a no-fly zone to seal Ukrainian skies to Russian strikes,” Republican Sen. Rick Scott, a member of the leadership, said in a statement.
