PARIS, Feb 28, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - Leaders of 23 European parliamentary chambers have urged Republican US House Speaker Mike Johnson to help fight "the axis of evil" and release a $60 billion aid package for war-torn Ukraine.

Johnson, a Donald Trump ally who leads a razor-thin Republican majority, has refused to allow a vote on a so-called supplemental funding bill in which US President Joe Biden has asked for the new aid to Ukraine fighting against the Russian invasion.

Two years into Russia's war, Ukraine's troops are exhausted and outgunned. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that Kyiv needs to receive a decision on the new US aid "within a month".

In a joint letter dated Tuesday, the heads of assemblies from 19 European countries including Austria, France, Germany and the Netherlands called on Johnson to help "provide Ukraine with the necessary funds to continue its fight".

"We believe that thanks to your personal leadership, the Congress will demonstrate historic bipartisan unity in support of the collective efforts to assist Ukraine," they said in the letter, an English-language copy of which Yael Braun-Pivet, president of France's lower-house National Assembly, on Wednesday posted on X, formerly Twitter.

"The axis of evil must be defeated, and all perpetrators brought to justice. This will serve as a significant deterrent to further conflicts and will return a sense of control and security to our people," the parliamentary leaders said.

The letter also said that the Russian invasion of Ukraine has had "a significant impact on the development of the security situation in the world".

"We see that while Iran and North Korea have begun to provide direct military support to Russia, the criminal actions of the Kremlin regime have inspired other dictatorial and undemocratic regimes, become a catalyst for the escalation of old conflicts, and put us on the brink of new confrontations," they said.

"The world is rapidly moving towards the destruction of the sustainable world order. We see it as our responsibility and our task to prevent this descent into chaos and impunity."
On Tuesday, Biden called a rare Oval Office meeting to persuade Johnson to unblock the aid for Kyiv. Johnson insisted the crisis on the Mexican border was his priority.