Russia-Ukraine updates: 2 US veterans who joined Ukrainian forces missing

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday thanked the U.S. House of Representatives for its approval of a nearly $40 billion package of humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine in a bill passed on Tuesday.

“We are looking forward to the consideration of this important document for us by the Senate,” Zelenskyy wrote in a tweet expressing gratitude to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, President Joe Biden and “all friends of Ukraine” in the House.

Earlier on Tuesday, two senators unveiled a resolution calling on the Biden administration to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D.-Conn., and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R.-S.C., said the designation, which could result in further sanctions for Russia, is warranted by Russia's war on Ukraine and conduct elsewhere under President Vladimir Putin.

“Putin is a thug, and a bully, and he will continue being an increasing threat to Europe and the world unless he is stopped,” Blumenthal said at a press conference, adding, “If there's anybody who embodies terrorism, totalitarianism and tyranny, it's Putin.”

The resolution was originally requested by the Ukrainian parliament, but Secretary of State Antony Blinken has so far declined to add Russia to the list of countries -- Cuba, Iran, North Korea and Syria -- considered to be state sponsors.

Russia's Ministry of Health sent the World Health Organization a letter in which it "strongly rejects" its responsibility for the rising death toll in Ukraine.

“The health emergency in Ukraine and neighboring countries is caused by the unconstitutional coup that took place in this country in 2014, and by the subsequent military aggression of the Kyiv regime against the population of Donbass in the period of 2014–2022,” Andrey Plutnitsky, Russia's envoy to the WHO, wrote in the letter.

Plutnitsky called on WHO member states to pay “special attention” to “the military biological activities undertaken by a number of countries on the territory of Ukraine, which represent a significant danger to the region.”

Members of the Russian military are trying to hide their involvement in some hostilities in Ukraine, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry's intelligence service said on Wednesday.

Russian troops, including some from the air and space forces, have demanded that the command keep their involvement in the invasion secret in order to avoid further possible responsibility for war crimes, the Ukrainian intelligence claimed.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Defense confirmed that 89 of the 90 M777 Howitzers promised to Ukraine have been handed over to the Ukrainian military.

Of the total count of 184,000 rounds of ammunition committed to Ukraine, “65 percent, so almost 120,000 rounds, are in [Ukraine],” a senior defense official said at a background briefing on Tuesday. The Russians added two battalion tactical groups to their force in Ukraine in the past 24 hours, the official added, bringing the new count of operational Russian BGTs up to 99.

-ABC News' Edward Szekeres, Max Uzol, Yuriy Zaliznyak and Irene Hnatiuk

The House on Tuesday approved a nearly $40 billion package of humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine, the latest tranche of relief to the country the U.S. is aggressively backing in its fight against Russia.

The bill, which was finalized earlier Tuesday and includes nearly $7 billion more funding than requested by the Biden administration, was approved in a 368-57 vote, with all Democrats backing the bill and all opposition coming from Republicans.

With the vote, Congress has now directed more than $50 billion to support Ukraine in the war with Russia. The House voted 36-169 on March 9 on a $13.6 billion package for Ukraine and other key European allies.

The Senate is expected to vote on the measure in the coming days.

The package includes $6 billion to help train, equip and support the Ukrainian armed forces, and more than $9 billion to replenish the U.S. stockpiles of military equipment and ammunition in the U.S. and abroad that have been tapped to re-arm Ukraine.

The measure would also help fund and support U.S. troops stationed in Europe and the operation of a Patriot air defense missile system in Europe, and it includes more than $900 million to support Ukranian refugees with housing, counseling and English language classes, as well as helping process and screen those traveling to the United States.

Additionally, the bill directs the inspector general of the Defense Department to provide a written report to the House and Senate defense committees reviewing the Ukraine program spending within 120 days of the law's enactment.

-ABC News' Ben Siegel

The State Department is urging Congress to quickly move on passing additional funding for Ukraine, calling the aid "vital" and warning the administration's other means of financing military support were quickly running out.

"Our assistance to Ukraine has been just as we promised: massive," State Department spokesperson Ned Price said during his daily briefing Tuesday. "We have provided $4.5 billion worth of security assistance to Ukraine since the start of this administration, some $3.8 billion worth of security assistance since the invasion began. These are supplies -- weapons -- precisely what Ukraine needs to defend itself."

But, he said, maintaining that support depends on lawmakers fulfilling the White House’s request for another $40 billion in funding.

"The fact, however, is that right now, our coffers in terms of drawdown funding -- they're dwindling," he said. "We now have less than $100 million left and we will exhaust those funds within the next week."

Price said the new tranche of funding would "help our Ukrainian partners and also our NATO allies do precisely what we feel it is imperative that they be positioned to do at this moment."

Pressed on whether the administration had a limit in mind when it came to sending lethal aid to Ukraine, Price said the focus was on fulfilling its promises to "provide Ukraine with the security assistance it needs to defend itself" and ensuring "our allies -- especially our allies on the eastern flank -- had what they needed to deter and potentially even respond to Russian aggression."

-ABC News' Shannon Crawford

Amid a three-year vacancy and with Ukraine in the grips of a brutal war, the U.S. Senate took its first major step towards confirming an American ambassador to Ukraine on Tuesday with a hearing in its Foreign Relations Committee for President Joe Biden's nominee, Bridget Brink.

Brink -- a veteran diplomat with 25 years of experience and the current U.S. ambassador to Slovakia -- acknowledged the great difficulties that would come with the post but said it would be the "honor of a lifetime."

"We face the biggest threat to peace and security in Europe in decades," she said during her opening statements. "If confirmed, I pledge to work with you to continue our commitment to a sovereign, democratic and independent Ukraine -- free to choose its own future."

Brink has bipartisan support and her path to confirmation appears to be a smooth one, though Sen. Jim Risch (R-Idaho), the ranking member of the committee, foretold "a lot scrutiny from Washington" when it comes to moving the U.S. embassy back to Kyiv and "helping to shepherd U.S. military, humanitarian and financial aid in the right places."

"I think it's really important for us to be there in person and present," Brink responded when questioned on plans to reopen the embassy in Kyiv. "I don't know exactly how fast we will be able to do this process, but I know we are trying to do it as fast as possible and it is certainly my hope and plan, if confirmed, to be able to start my mission in Kyiv."

She later added: "It's necessary for us to be there on the ground."

The nominee was also asked about the need for the aid package currently working its way through Congress.

"It is incredibly important that the supplemental move fast," Brink said. "The needs are large."

Brink also promised to work to assist Ukraine in holding Russia accountable for alleged war crimes.

"We are going to use every tool at our disposal," she said. "I can tell you it's a personal priority of mine."

-ABC News' Shannon Crawford