He will hold a long meeting with Biden and will later speak to members of the House of Representatives and the Senate
The President of Ukraine, Volodimir Zelenski, travels this Wednesday to the capital of the United States in what will be the first visit to a foreign country by the Ukrainian president since the beginning of the Russian invasion of his country. This was confirmed late yesterday by the US government, which has detailed that, during his visit, Zelenski will meet with President Joe Biden and will participate in a special session at the Capitol to address members of the House of Representatives and the Senate.
During the meeting at the White House, which will take place at 2:00 p.m. (8:00 p.m. in Spain), Zelensky and Biden will have “a prolonged meeting” in which key members of the National Security team and the Biden Cabinet will participate.
Later, Zelensky will make a speech at a joint session of Congress demonstrating “strong bipartisan support for Ukraine,” as detailed in the White House letter. After his intervention, the Ukrainian president will return to his country.
The Ukrainian president’s visit to the United States was discussed by both leaders during a telephone conversation on December 11, and Zelensky was formally invited to the White House on December 14.
The visit, which did not materialize until the last minute and has been kept secret for security reasons, will coincide with the Biden Administration’s intention to send Ukraine a new defense aid package that will include Patriot missile systems, CNN has reported.
Since last February 24, when the Russian invasion of Ukraine began, Zelenski has remained in kyiv and has not left the country, all this despite the offer of some countries for the president to take refuge in the face of Russian aggression.
However, Ukraine’s president has declined all offers, emphasizing that he, as his country’s head of state, should remain through the war. So far, only the first lady of the country has represented Ukraine abroad in person, while the president has done so through videoconferences.
#Zelensky #visits #today #trip #start #Russian #invasion