The White House denied on Monday that the United States is involved in a proxy war with Russia in Ukraine amid growing Western assistance to Kyiv.

President Joe Biden requested last week that Congress pass $33 billion in aid to Ukraine. He will head to Alabama to visit a Lockheed Martin plant that is manufacturing anti-tank weapons being sent to the Ukrainians.

DEMOCRATS HOPE TO MESSAGE THEIR WAY OUT OF A MIDTERM ELECTION LOSS

"This is not a proxy war,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters at Monday’s briefing. "This is a war between Russia and Ukraine. NATO is not involved, the U.S. is not fighting this war."

Psaki said the idea of a proxy war is a Russian talking point, briefly misspeaking that it was a Republican talking point.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi led a delegation of Democratic lawmakers to Kyiv to visit Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky over the weekend. They pledged to help Ukraine prevail in its war against Russia.

The White House has tried to walk a careful line of simultaneously helping Ukraine repel the Russian invasion and avoid a wider war involving the U.S. and NATO.

Some have criticized Biden for doing just enough to keep Ukraine from losing but not providing enough resources for Kyiv. Biden has since talked more about the importance of Ukrainian success as he seeks more money to fortify the country’s defenses. U.S. troops have also been deployed to Europe to shore up NATO’s eastern flank.

"We said we’d not send U.S. troops to fight Russian troops in Ukraine, but we would provide robust military assistance and try to unify the Western world against Russia’s aggression," Biden said last week.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

The White House has been pressed to define victory as the U.S. increases its commitment to the Ukrainian war effort. Psaki reiterated that Washington is seeking a diplomatic resolution.