Some more Ukraine-related developments now, courtesy of RFE/RL's news desk and Washington bureau:
A bill to provide defensive weapons to Ukraine and expand sanctions against Russian defense firms passed the U.S. Senate on December 11.
The Ukraine Freedom Support Act passed the chamber by a voice vote. Senators Robert Menendez (Democrat-New Jersey) and Bob Corker (Republican-Tennessee) sponsored the bill, which passed unanimously out of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on September 18.
It remains unclear whether the U.S. House will have time to bring the bill up for a vote, as lawmakers are getting ready to leave for the year.
The bill authorizes $350 million to provide Ukraine with defensive weaponry; grants Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia major non-NATO ally status; and authorizes $50 million in short-term energy assistance to Ukraine.
The Obama administration has thus far declined to give Ukraine defensive lethal aid.