Biden calls allies to say U.S. still supports Ukraine

President Biden reassured allies Tuesday that the U.S. continues to back Ukraine in its war with Russia.

The call came after the passage of a clean stopgap measure over the weekend that provided no new aid for Ukraine. Some aid is left from the 2023 funding bill, but it will soon run out.

Mr. Biden was joined on the line by leaders from Canada, the European Union, Germany, Italy, Japan, Poland, Romania, the United Kingdom and France. A leader from NATO was on the call as well, according to the White House.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Monday said the U.S. will send another aid package to Ukraine “soon.”

“There is strong — a very strong international coalition behind Ukraine,” Ms. Jean-Pierre said. “And if Putin thinks he outlasts us, he’s wrong. He’s wrong. And so, we will have another package of aid for Ukraine soon to signal our continued support for the brave people of Ukraine.”

In remarks Sunday, Mr. Biden urged Congress to act quickly with funding for Ukraine, saying there’s “not much time and there’s an overwhelming sense of urgency.”

“We cannot, under any circumstance, allow American support for Ukraine to be interrupted,” he said.

There has been talk about a deal between House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and the president on Ukraine aid, to which Mr. Biden hinted Sunday.

Yet Mr. McCarthy told reporters Monday, “There’s no side deal. So I don’t know who’s bringing that up. There is no side deal on Ukraine.”

The speaker explained that during the stopgap bill discussion, he was asked to make sure the money that was secured for Ukraine in the 2023 funding bill makes it over there during this 45-day continuing resolution.

In an X post on Tuesday, Mr. Biden wrote that he hopes Mr. McCarthy and the House keep their “word and secure passage of the support needed to help Ukraine as it defends itself.”

The president added, “We are the indispensable nation in the world — let’s act like it.”