NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has once again called on the US Congress to approve additional military assistance to Ukraine, stressing that the delay in this decision has "real consequences" on the battlefield.

Stoltenberg stressed before a meeting of NATO foreign ministers on 3 April that it is "important for NATO allies to make decisions faster, and this also applies to the United States."

"The United States is the largest ally and provides the most support [to Ukraine – ed.]. And the fact that there is still no agreement in the US Congress to extend this support has consequences. This is one of the reasons why Ukrainians are forced to save artillery ammunition, why it is difficult for them to resist Russian forces, which outnumber them and have extraordinary military power," he added.

Stoltenberg stressed that any delay in helping Ukraine "has real consequences on the battlefield".

"In recent weeks, I have met with senators and members of the House of Representatives, and they assured me that there is a significant majority in Congress in support [of aid to Ukraine – ed.]. So the question now is to turn this majority into a vote and a firm decision. And I hope that this will happen as soon as possible," Stoltenberg said.

The approval of more than US$60 billion in aid for Ukraine by the US Congress is currently being blocked by Republicans in the House of Representatives. The White House has repeatedly warned that this would significantly harm Kyiv's military efforts on the battlefield.

Mike Johnson, Speaker of the House of Representatives, announced that the aid package for Ukraine would include "some important innovations", including the possible allocation of aid on credit.