Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has declared that his country is ready to assist those affected by the devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area, with 150 Ukrainian firefighters ready to go.
The offer, articulated Sunday, cited the "extremely difficult" situation in California and said that Ukrainians "can help Americans save lives". It comes several days after Donald Trump Jr joined many others in criticizing the fact that a lot of LA firefighting equipment had previously been handed over to Ukraine. "Oh look of course the LA fire department donated a bunch of their supplies to Ukraine," Trump Jr said on X last Wednesday.
Zelensky stated, "Today, I instructed Ukraine’s Minister of Internal Affairs and our diplomats to prepare for the possible participation of our rescuers in combating the wildfires in California. The situation there is extremely difficult, and Ukrainians can help Americans save lives."
"This is currently being coordinated, and we have offered our assistance to the American side through the relevant channels. 150 of our firefighters are already prepared," he continued.
It remains unclear whether the Ukrainian firefighters are actually en route to the US or not. Canada and Mexico are key countries which have already sent firefighters to help. The Palisades fire and the Eaton fire have yet to be contained, having ravaged the area for over a week straight, amid high California winds.
The several fires have resulted in at least 24 dead and over 150,000 people forcibly evacuated from their homes. Billions of dollars in damage has been documented.
Critics of Biden's essentially 'blank check' approach to Ukraine have pointed out that American taxpayers have been forced to foot the bill for a foreign country and a disastrous overseas proxy war, instead of investing in infrastructure and keeping people safe at home. This was a similar criticism in September and October when the Carolinas witnessed severe and deadly flooding by Hurricane Helene, and whole towns were stranded without resources, with US citizens having received minimal emergency funds.
Zelensky's new offer to help California, despite the reality being that he's in desperate need of more manpower in his own war-ravaged country, indicates he's more and more worried on a PR level over the potential that Trump could drastically cut defense and economic aid to Kiev.
A March 2022 story out of California stated that "Los Angeles County fire crews are sending some of their extra equipment to firefighters in Ukraine." It had detailed, "The plane carrying that much-needed surplus equipment, such as hoses, nozzles, turnouts, helmets, body armor and other personal protective gear, is expected to take off Friday." Extra?... Putting America "Ukraine first" is the Biden bad foreign policy idea that keeps on giving... and taking away from American citizens caught in the throes of emergency and disaster.
Meanwhile, one Ukrainian media outlet is asking the following question pertaining to the offer—Zelensky will send Ukrainian firefighters to California: Will they want to return home?