McCarthy’s future hangs in limbo as Washington awaits Trump response

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Washington, D.C.

Thomas Jefferson Room

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Well, good afternoon, everyone.  It’s a pleasure to welcome Ukraine’s prime minister here to the State Department after a couple of days in Washington, most notably with President Biden.  I had a chance to visit with the prime minister before Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and I’m very pleased to be able to receive you now here.  I think this is the first visit since the Russian aggression by a senior official of the Ukrainian Government, further evidence that a independent, sovereign Ukraine is going to be around a lot longer than Vladimir Putin.

We continue to work to support Ukraine with the assistance that it needs – military, economic, humanitarian.  We continue in coordination with allies and partners as well to exert significant pressure on Russia to end the aggression, and of course, we continue to take steps to shore up the defense of our NATO Alliance.  But I’m looking forward to having an opportunity to hear from the prime minister about all of these ongoing efforts and what we can continue to do to support Ukraine in its fight for independence, for sovereignty – a fight that it will win.

Mr. Prime Minister.

PRIME MINISTER SHMYHAL:  Your Excellency (inaudible).  It’s an honor to be here.  My country now is on the 58th day of war, and United States support Ukraine so much, so strong.  We feel this support because – weapon, financial support, and the personal involvement of President of United States, your personal involvement in support of Ukraine.  It’s – we feel it, we appreciate it so much, and we are really grateful to you and to your people, to your country for support of us before the face of this bloody war from Russian side.  So, they really make atrocities, they make war crimes in our country, but we have support of all civilized world.  We feel it, and we would like – and we absolutely sure that we will win in this war.  There is no other way for us and for all civilized world.

So, during my visit to here, we have absolutely amazing meeting with President Biden.  I am sure that today we also will have very fruitful and productive meeting.  Yesterday, we have many, many meetings, including a roundtable with all ministers of finances from all around the world.  We also discuss possibility of supporting of Ukraine before the face of this war.  So, thank you for this possibility because this visit is absolutely fruitful, absolutely fulfilled by very important meetings.  And I am sure that after this visit and during the next day, days, weeks, and months, Ukraine will win.  We’ll have absolutely perfect recovery plan.  And we will fulfill the recovery funds with proper finances.

For our support, we need – we strongly need four things, and I (inaudible) communicated with all of our counterparts during all of our meetings.  The first one is ammunition and weapon because we should stop aggressor on the – our borders and don’t let them to go to the democratic Europe, to European countries.  The second, is sanctions because it’s the most important instrument of influence of the – on the aggressor.  The third one is financing; it will let us and will help us to save macroeconomical stability of our country, to execute our humanitarian and social responsibilities from the side of our state.  And the fourth, very important issue is our European perspectives, because the biggest of – the biggest quantity of our people, more than 96 percent of Ukrainians, strongly would like to be part of European family, part of civilized world, but not part of Soviet Union or a Russian empire.

So, it’s very important for us, and because of this, many of our young guys and girls pay their lives in this war for this Ukrainian perspectives – European perspectives, and civilized perspectives.  So, thank you so much for this strong support, for sustainable support of our country before the face of this war, and in our development.  Thank you so much.  Thank you.

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Thank you very much.