Biden confirms more aid to Ukraine and denounces Putin’s “inhumane and brutal war”

First modification: 12/21/2022 – 20:49

As Russia’s offensive against Ukraine reached 300 days, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Washington on Wednesday, December 21, for a visit that had been kept secret until confirmed by a White House statement Tuesday night. This is the Ukrainian leader’s first trip abroad since the start of the Russian aggression against his country on February 24.

After having met with his US counterpart, Joe Biden, and with the latter’s security advisers at the White House, both presidents gave a joint press conference in which the US president promised that the Ukrainians “will never be alone” against to Russia and that the United States will help kyiv “for as long as it takes.”

“When Ukraine’s freedom was threatened, the American people did not hesitate,” Biden said. The head of the White House also stated that “Vladimir Putin has no intention of ending this war.”

For his part, the President of Ukraine assured that the war could only end when Ukraine’s sovereignty was fully restored.

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Before the press conference; During the meeting of the leaders at the White House, the US head of state promised to increase his support for kyiv and assured that the United States “will continue to strengthen Ukraine’s ability to defend itself.” Zelensky, in turn, expressed to his counterpart his “sincere thanks” for the support of the United States, which has provided kyiv with billions of weapons to defend itself against Russia. The two heads of state also spoke about the evolution of the fighting on the ground, the needs of the Ukrainian army, Western support in all its forms and the sanctions decided against Russia.

Finally, after the press conference, the Ukrainian head of state will go to the Capitol to deliver a speech before the Senate and the House of Representatives before addressing Congress in the afternoon. He is expected to thank parliamentarians for their political and financial support and ask them to continue this effort as public fatigue over the war in Ukraine grows.

Nearly $2 billion in new military aid for Ukraine

Moments before Zelensky’s arrival in Washington, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced nearly $2 billion in new military aid for Ukraine, including a Patriot missile battery to help kyiv defend against Russian missiles.

The Patriot missile battery is crucial equipment that will be delivered to Ukraine for the first time since the war broke out. kyiv has been calling for this machine for months to counter Russia’s air superiority and has reiterated this request several times in recent weeks, following the increase in missile attacks by Moscow against civilian infrastructure.

On Tuesday night, a senior official announced that the US military would train Ukrainian soldiers – in a third country – to learn how to use these highly sophisticated surface-to-air missiles.

A symbolic visit to affirm the Ukrainian cause in the United States

This visit by the Ukrainian president to Washington marks the first face-to-face meeting between Biden and Zelensky since the start of the war in Ukraine. As this country prepares to enter a second year of conflict, the symbolic importance of this trip is evident.

Its political and military importance is equally clear, as fighting in several eastern cities remains very intense and the Ukrainian army says it still needs more ammunition.

This year, the United States has steadily increased the amount of equipment and ammunition it supplies to kyiv and has already provided nearly $20 billion in military aid.

For the Ukrainian president, the visit to Washington is intended to reaffirm his country’s cause in the US debate at a time when public opinion is increasingly war-weary and Democrats have lost control of the House of Representatives in the mid-term elections.

With Reuters and AP