Polish PM says US Republicans should be ashamed for not backing Ukraine aid

WARSAW: Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Thursday that Republican senators in the United States should be ashamed for blocking a $60 billion aid package for Ukraine, saying former US president Ronald Reagan would be “turning in his grave”.

Republicans in the US Senate on Wednesday defeated a bipartisan effort to bolster border security that had taken months to negotiate, but said they could still approve aid for Ukraine, and Israel, that had been tied up in the deal.

“Dear Republican Senators of America. Ronald Reagan, who helped millions of us to win back our freedom and independence, must be turning in his grave today,” Tusk wrote on social media platform X. “Shame on you.”

Poland has been one of Ukraine’s staunchest allies since Russia invaded the country in 2022. Ronald Reagan, a Republican, was the 40th president of the United States, holding the role from 1981 to 1989. He was known for taking a tough stance against the Soviet Union, which he famously described as the “evil empire”.

US Republicans for months have insisted that any additional US aid to Ukraine, and Israel, must also address the high numbers of migrants arriving at the US-Mexico border - a top voter concern. Donald Trump, far and away the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination, has said he would ask European allies to reimburse the United States for around $200 billion worth of munitions sent to Ukraine.That has raised fears that US funding for Kyiv in its war against Russia would dry up completely during a potential second Trump administration.