Zelenskiy visits US, to meet with Biden

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is travelling to the United States to meet President Joe Biden and address Congress on Wednesday.

Zelenskiy’s visit, his first known overseas trip since Russia’s invasion, is expected to last several hours.

Zelenskiy said he was going to Washington for talks with Biden to strengthen Ukraine’s “resilience and defence capabilities” amid repeated Russian attacks on energy and water supplies in the dead of winter.

He will hold talks with Biden and top national security aides at the White House, participate in a joint news conference with Biden and then go to Capitol Hill to address a joint session of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.

“The visit will underscore the United States’ steadfast commitment to supporting Ukraine for as long as it takes, including through the provision of economic, humanitarian, and military assistance,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.

Biden will announce a package of military assistance for Ukraine valued at nearly $2 billion that will include a Patriot missile battery to help it defend itself against barrages of Russian missiles, a senior U.S. official said.

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Biden will not use the talks to push Zelenskiy towards the negotiating table with Putin, the U.S. official said. There are currently no peace talks under way.

The Biden administration has provided about $20 billion in military assistance to Ukraine, including artillery ammunition, munitions for NASAMS air defence systems and for high mobility artillery rocket systems (HIMARS).

Zelenskiy has repeated calls to the West for more weaponry.

Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24 with the aim of capturing Kyiv in days, a goal that quickly proved out of reach.

Zainab Sa’id