Zelensky calls for same 'unity' from allies as for Israel

KIEV

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged allies on Monday to show the same "unity" towards Ukraine as Israel, which said it repelled an Iranian attack over the weekend with Western support.

Ukraine has in recent months grown increasingly frustrated at delays in Western aid, including air defences it says are urgently needed to repel deadly Russian attacks.

In a post on Telegram, Zelensky thanked allies who had responded to Ukraine's call for more air defences but said: "The intensity of Russian attacks requires greater unity".

"By defending Israel, the free world has demonstrated that such unity is not only possible, but also one hundred percent effective," he said.

"The same is possible in defending Ukraine, which, like Israel, is not a NATO member, from terror," he continued, calling for "political will" from Ukraine's allies.

The U.S. Senate passed a $95 billion package in February that included major funding to help Ukraine in its fight against Russia's invasion, as well as fresh support for Israel and Taiwan.

But the legislation has stalled in the narrowly divided House of Representatives amid opposition from the Republican party's right wing.

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, however, announced Monday that a vote would be held in the coming days on the legislation, but not in its current form.

Instead, the House "will vote on each of these measures separately in four different pieces", he said.

He added that votes on the separate bills could occur by Friday evening, but members would be allowed to offer amendments, which could prolong the process.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba had also invoked Western support for Israel in a press conference earlier in the day, calling for more aid "as soon as possible".

"We see that when allies act as one in a very coordinated way, not a single missile falls on the targets, reaches targets in Israel," Kuleba said alongside his Norwegian counterpart.

"Everything we are asking from partners, even if you cannot act the way you act in Israel, give us what we need and we will do the rest of the job," he added.

Iran over the weekend launched hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel in retaliation for a deadly April 1 strike on Tehran's consulate in Damascus.

Israel's military said it intercepted 99 percent of the aerial threats with the help of the United States and other allies, and that the overnight attack caused only minor damage.