Zelenskyy’s first trip outside Ukraine
The President of the United States, Joe Biden, has received his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, at the White House. This is the first trip of the Ukrainian president outside his country since the outbreak of the war with Russia last February 24. SOURCE: (EUROPA PRESS)
At the gates of the White House
Volodymyr Zelenskyy, dressed in his usual olive green attire, posed with Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, at the gates of the White House, leaving a historic image that reflects the relationship between the two countries and their opposition to Vladimir Putin’s Russia.
Brief dialogue
Biden and Zelenskyy briefly spoke to the media inside the White House. In this conversation, the U.S. president took the opportunity to denounce the Russian attacks. He also denounced Putin’s attempt to «use winter as a weapon».
More armament and training
Against this, Biden has highlighted the joint support of Democrats and Republicans, as well as European and international partners, to provide «humanitarian and security aid» to Ukraine, and has remarked that he will provide the Ukrainian Army with more weapons and train its troops for their proper use.
An honor
For his part, Zelenskyy thanked Biden for his invitation and acknowledged that it was «an honor» to be able to be in the White House, a place he would have liked to go before, but could not travel to «because the situation (in Ukraine) is very difficult».
Gratitude to the American people
«Now we can start to control the situation thanks to your support. We have very important issues to talk about,» acknowledged the Ukrainian president, who, beyond the challenges facing both his country and «the world,» conveyed «from the heart» the gratitude of his fellow citizens to the American authorities and people.
Joint Base Andrews
Just half an hour earlier, the Ukrainian president had landed at Joint Base Andrews, outside Washington, aboard a U.S. Air Force plane, as Zelenskyy himself confirmed on his official channel on the social network Telegram.
Economic and military affairs
The Ukrainian president plans to hold a meeting with Biden and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, in which, according to National Security Council communications spokesman John Kirby, they will discuss economic and military issues, as well as a hypothetical peace with Russia.
Joint press conference
Afterwards, the two leaders will hold a joint press conference and later Volodymyr Zelenskyy will travel to Capitol Hill to address a joint session of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Secret visit
The visit, which was not finalized until the last minute and has been kept secret for security reasons, coincides with the Biden Administration’s announcement to provide Ukraine with a military aid package valued at $1.85 billion and including Patriot missiles.
Awarding of a Cross of Military Merit
The Ukrainian president thanked Biden for his «leadership» and, as a token of this, presented him with a Cross of Military Merit that an Army captain had given him to present to the U.S. president.
Biden, grateful
Biden, who expressed his gratitude, assured that he did not deserve it and said that one of his sons fought in Iraq and also received a similar medal that «he always wore to the battlefield». «I will take care of getting it to him,» he said.
