Biden hosts Zelensky in Washington
Ukrainian leader, on first known trip outside of his country since Russian invasion, says visit shows ‘situation under control’ due to US support; Biden vows ‘united defense’.
US President Joe Biden welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to the White House on Wednesday, pledging ongoing support for Ukraine in fending off Russian aggression while saying that the US would back Ukraine’s efforts to pursue a “just peace.”
In brief remarks before their Oval Office meeting, Biden said the US and Ukraine would continue to project a “united defense” as Russia wages a “brutal assault on Ukraine’s right to exist as a nation.”
Russia is “trying to use winter as a weapon, but Ukrainian people continue to inspire the world,” Biden said. He told Zelensky that “it’s an honour to be by your side.”
The highly sensitive trip was taking place after 10 months of a brutal war that has seen tens of thousands of casualties on both sides and devastation for Ukrainian civilians. Just before his arrival, the US announced its largest single delivery of arms to Ukraine, including Patriot surface-to-air missiles, and Congress planned to vote on a spending package that includes about $45 billion in emergency assistance to Ukraine.
Zelensky headed abroad after making a daring and dangerous trip to what he called the hottest spot on the 1,300-kilometre front line of the war, the city of Bakhmut in Ukraine’s contested Donetsk province. He praised Ukrainian troops for their “courage, resilience and strength” as artillery boomed in the background.
Poland’s private broadcaster, TVN24, said Zelensky crossed into Poland early Wednesday on his way to Washington. The station showed footage of what appeared to be Zelensky arriving at a train station and being escorted to a motorcade. TVN24 said the video, partially blurred for security reasons, was shot in Przemysl, a Polish border town that has been the arrival point for many refugees fleeing the war.
US officials, citing security concerns, were mum about Zelensky’s travel plans, but a US official confirmed that Zelensky was flown on a US Air Force jet that landed at Joint Base Andrews, just outside the capital.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement that 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.”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, in her invitation to Zelensky to speak to lawmakers, said “the fight for Ukraine is the fight for democracy itself” and that they were looking forward to “hearing your inspiring message of unity, resilience and determination.”
US and Ukrainian officials have made clear they do not envision an imminent resolution to the war and are preparing for fighting to continue for some time.
Biden has repeated that while the US will arm and train Ukraine, American forces will not be directly engaged in the war.
Biden and Zelensky first discussed the idea of a visit during a telephone call on December 11, with a formal invitation following three days later, according to a senior US administration official. Zelensky accepted the invitation on Friday and it was confirmed on Sunday, when the White House began coordinating with Pelosi to arrange the congressional address.
The White House consulted with Zelensky on security, including the risk of Russian action while he was briefly out of the country, said the official, who declined to detail the measures taken to safeguard the Ukrainian leader. The official briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the visit.
The $1.85 billion US military aid package will include, for the first time, a Patriot missile battery and precision-guided bombs for its fighter jets, US officials said. It represents an expansion in the kinds of advanced weaponry intended to bolster Ukraine’s air defenses against what has been an increasing barrage of Russian missiles.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry has said the delivery of the advanced surface-to-air missile system would be considered a provocative step and that the system and any crews accompanying it would be a legitimate target for Moscow’s military.
It was unclear when the Patriot battery would arrive on the front lines in Ukraine, given that US troops will have to train Ukrainian forces. The training could take several weeks and is expected to be done in Germany.
The visit comes at an important moment, with the White House bracing for greater resistance when Republicans take control of the House in January and give more scrutiny to aid for Ukraine. GOP leader Kevin McCarthy of California has said his party will not write a “blank check” for Ukraine.
Biden and Zelensky have frequently talked by phone, with Biden praising Ukraine for remaining steadfast against the Russians and Zelensky thanking the US president for support.
The one exception to those warm calls came in June, soon after Biden notified Zelensky that an additional $1 billion package was headed to Ukraine. Zelensky didn’t miss a beat in ticking off the additional assistance he said Ukraine needed.
That irked Biden, who underscored to Zelensky the American people’s generosity. But the brief moment of tension hasn’t caused any lasting difficulty, according to officials familiar with the episode who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the private conversations.
Russia’s invasion, which began on February 24, has lost momentum. The illegally annexed provinces of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia remain fiercely contested.
With the fighting in the east at a stalemate, Moscow has used missiles and drones to attack Ukraine’s power equipment, hoping to leave people without electricity as freezing weather sets in.
In a video released by his office from the Bakhmut visit, Zelensky was handed a Ukrainian flag and alluded to delivering it to US leaders.
“The guys handed over our beautiful Ukrainian flag with their signatures for us to pass on,” Zelensky said in the video. “We are not in an easy situation. The enemy is increasing its army. Our people are braver and need more powerful weapons. We will pass it on from the boys to the Congress, to the president of the United States. We are grateful for their support, but it is not enough. It is a hint — it is not enough.”
Volodymyr Fesenko, head of the Kyiv-based Penta Center think tank, said Zelensky’s visit to the US “should determine the course of the war — Zelensky for the first time dared to leave Ukraine and is counting on being able to maintain, and possibly even strengthen, US military and economic assistance.”
Hanna Danylovych, 43, who lives in Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, and works as a scientist, welcomed the prospect of additional military supplies, saying “there is a great desire and dream to speed up the removal of Russian evil from our land.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday told his country’s military leaders that Russia will achieve its stated goals in Ukraine and use the combat experience to strengthen its military. His defense minister, Sergei Shoigu, said Russia’s military must be expanded from the current 1 million to 1.5 million during the fighting in Ukraine.
Times of Israel
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