Biden pledges rapid support to Ukraine once Senate passes funding

The U.S. administration will "quickly provide" arms to meet Ukraine's urgent military needs, President Joe Biden assured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a phone call on Monday.

The new $61 billion security package, which includes air defense weapons, will start being distributed once the US Senate passes the legislation and Biden has signed it into law.

After months of delay, the House of Representatives gave its approval at the weekend. The Senate is expected to vote on the package on Tuesday.