Leader Of The Free World Apologizes To Zelensky While Handing Him Another Check

While handing over to Kiev the latest $225 million check defense aid package, the "leader of the free world" has apologized to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Biden during the bilateral meeting in Normandy, where world leaders are attending events for the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings, told Zelensky he is sorry for the delayed passage of the new military aid package earlier this year (at $61 billion total for Ukraine out the $95 billion passed) and disparaged the Republican opposition that held it up.

"You know, you haven't bowed down, you haven't yielded at all, you continue to fight in a way that is just remarkable, is just remarkable—and we’re not going to walk away from you," Biden told the Ukrainian leader. That's when he followed with:

"I apologize for the weeks of not knowing what’s going to pass, in terms of funding, because we had trouble getting the bill that we had to pass that had the money from some of our very conservative members who were holding it up, but we got it done."

However, Biden still touted that since finally signing the supplemental in April, there's been a surge in new packages.

"Since then, including today, I've announced six packages of significant funding—today I’m also signing an additional package for $225 million to help you reconstruct the electric grid," he said.

Many of these new packages have focused on delivering badly needed artillery ammo. At the front lines, Russia has been outpacing Ukrainian forces' rate of artillery fire by a rate of 10 to 1, according to war monitors. Ukraine has been fairing poorly, is being pushed back in places like Kharkiv, and is suffering its worst ever manpower shortage and crisis.

But Biden still committed to Zelensky and to Ukraine that: "We’re still in... Completely. Thoroughly."

The day prior, Zelensky in a speech addressing D-Day anniversary commemorations drew parallels with Russia's war in Ukraine: "Allies defended Europe's freedom then, and Ukrainians do so now. Unity prevailed then, and true unity can prevail today."

Biden also struck a similar theme, talking about the "struggle between a dictatorship and freedom" and linking Russia's President Putin with 'tyranny' against the 'free world' - a message also reminiscent of the Cold War.