November 10, 2023

Duckworth Reaffirms Support for Ukraine in Meeting with Illinois’s Ukrainian Congress Committee of America Chapter

 

[CHICAGO, IL] – In Chicago’s Ukrainian Village neighborhood, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)—a member of U.S. Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees—reiterated her support for Ukraine and Ukrainian-Americans in a meeting with several community leaders, activists and stakeholders, including members of Illinois’s Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA) chapter. Today’s meeting comes as the Senate considers critical additional aid for Ukraine as they continue to fight for their freedom against Putin’s unprovoked and unjustified war of choice. Duckworth also underscored that supporting our Ukrainian partners does not only help them but is also vitally important for America’s own national security and strengthens the U.S. defense industrial base. Photos from the meeting are available at the Senator’s website.

“I’m thankful for this opportunity to once again meet with so many leaders of Chicago’s resilient Ukrainian-American community,” Duckworth said. “Our country and the world remain in awe of the bravery of the Ukrainian people who are so effectively defending their homeland and their freedom while continuing to repel Putin’s forces against overwhelming odds. Not only should we continue to work to secure additional, uninterrupted aid for Ukraine so they can defeat Putin, but we should also do everything we can to help put them on a stronger path to self-sustainment and prepare them for the years after they win this war.”

Duckworth has been a strong supporter of Ukraine in its fight against Russia’s invasion and met with the UCCA last spring. During a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing this week, she reiterated the importance of expanding cooperation between the U.S.’s and Ukraine’s energy industries to bolster energy security and secure greater international investments that will help create more jobs here at home. Last week, Duckworth spoke with U.S. Special Representative Penny Pritzker about her role and vision to help advance Ukraine’s economic recovery. Last month, Duckworth visited Romania and reaffirmed our nation’s commitment to all members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) as Russia continues its war of aggression in Ukraine.

Duckworth supported the Biden Administration’s decision to provide additional weapons and capabilities to Ukraine, including cluster munitions. Duckworth also urged the Biden Administration to accelerate the sale of M1A2 SEPv3 tanks to Poland. The letter asked the Biden Administration to engage with additional NATO allies to determine if the Russian Federation’s brutal act of war requires the U.S to develop and execute any additional sales to strengthen the military capabilities of other NATO members. She called on the Biden Administration to grant Temporary Protected Status to Ukrainians in the U.S. following the Russian military invasion.

Late last year, Duckworth also met with Ukrainian Soldier Oleksandr Chaika who received care at Medical Center Orthotics and Prosthetics (MCOP) in Silver Spring, Maryland, after he was deployed to the Luhansk region as part of the Ukrainian military in the face of Putin’s war of choice against Ukraine and lost his leg to an explosive. Oleksandr has now received a prosthetic leg as part of MCOP’s Operation Renew to serve Ukrainian military personnel.

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