Top Senate Republican, key Ukraine backer McConnell announces resignation in November

The leader of the minority of the Republican Party in the US Senate, Mitch McConnell, announced that he will leave his post in November 2024, according to the politician's statement.

"One of life’s most underappreciated talents is to know when it’s time to move on," McConnell said.

He noted that this will be his last term as the Republican leader in the Senate.

"I’m not going anywhere anytime soon, however. I will complete the job my colleagues have given me until we select a new Leader in November and they take the helm next January," the senator stated.

The lawmaker said it was time for the "next generation of leadership."

McConnell has been a senator since 1985, and he has been the Republican leader of the Senate for 18 years, since 2005 – a record for such a position. Since the beginning of the full-scale war, he was one of the main supporters of increasing military aid to Ukraine.

On February 14, 2024, US President Biden called on the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, to immediately vote on the aid bill for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.

The House of Representatives recessed until February 28. If the Speaker of the House blocks a vote on the bill, Democrats can use a procedure that allows them to bypass the Speaker and bring the issue to the floor. However, this requires time and 218 signatures of parliamentarians (Republicans have 221 mandates, Democrats have 213).

On Monday, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Speaker of the US House of Representatives Johnson promised him that he would do "everything" to continue aid to Ukraine.

On Wednesday, Johnson said that he would put the continuation of aid to Ukraine to a vote "in a timely manner", but the priority is the border with Mexico.