Foreign Secretary tells US Republicans they must back aid deal for Ukraine
Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron has urged US Republicans to back Ukraine as they hold out on authorising tens of billions of dollars' worth of military support to help repel the Russian invasion.
US President Joe Biden is battling to get his fresh military and economic aid package for Ukraine through the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.
Efforts are intensifying to shore up support for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as a possible return of Donald Trump to the White House raises concern.
Lord Cameron used his two-day visit to the United States to appeal to Republicans in an interview on Fox News.
If the support package was not approved, he said the message that would send out would be "really, extremely bad".
"I'm more worried that we're not going to back them enough," he said, as he praised the "brave" and "united" Ukrainian defenders.
He said it was "about American security too", saying Russian President Vladimir Putin would go after other European nations if he wins in Ukraine - a move that could ultimately draw in US troops if a Nato ally was attacked.
Lord Cameron also spoke Sky News, saying: "There's definitely a majority in here to back Ukraine, but it's made more complicated by the politics."
He was asked what he would say to those Republicans who are urging Kyiv to negotiate with Mr Putin in a deal that would see Russia gaining land.
Lord Cameron replied: "What I say to them is look, of course one day we have to help bring this to an end, but right now the task is to support Ukraine, to help them in this fight, to help them through the winter.
"It shouldn't be for us to say to the Ukrainians now is the time to make this proposal, or that proposal. Right now what we've got to do is back them."
The Foreign Secretary is expected to meet US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Republican and Democratic congressional leaders as part of his trip.
The crisis in the Middle East will also top his discussions, as Israel widens its offensive into southern Gaza amid growing fears about the fate of the civilian population.
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