Key events
Zelenskiy’s high-security travel to Washington
Reuters has this fascinating report on how Zelenskiy got to Washington.
Zelenskiy’s surprise visit started with a secretive train ride to Poland late on Tuesday.
The next morning, he arrived in the southern Polish city of Przemysl, where he was spotted at the train station according to footage from private broadcaster TVN, along with US ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink, who accompanied him.
Zelenskiy’s visit had been planned for days and organised in secret because of concerns about his safety, but details were tweeted on Tuesday by a reporter from US-based newsletter Punchbowl News.
In Poland, he boarded a US government plane which landed at about noon EST (1700 GMT) on Wednesday at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, some 12 miles southeast of Washington.
He traveled by motorcade to Blair House, the presidential guest house along Pennsylvania Avenue, and after freshening up from his trip, he traveled to the nearby White House, where he was greeted by President Joe Biden and his wife Jill Biden.
On my way to the US to strengthen resilience and defense capabilities of 🇺🇦. In particular, @POTUS and I will discuss cooperation between 🇺🇦 and 🇺🇸. I will also have a speech at the Congress and a number of bilateral meetings.
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) December 21, 2022
There was no “mathematical formula” for the right day for Zelenskiy to make this trip, a senior Biden administration official told reporters late on Tuesday, but added that the trip would be “an important injection of momentum and sustenance” to US and allied support as winter sets in.
The administration consulted closely with Zelenskiy on the “security parameters” of him being able to leave Ukraine and visit the United States briefly and return, said the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
“Of course, it ultimately was his decision to make. He concluded that those security parameters were met. What he needed, we agreed with that, and so we are executing accordingly,” the official said.
Apologies, Zelenskiy’s address to Congress is due to start at 7.30pm not 7pm.
If you’re just joining us, we’re waiting to hear from Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in his first foreign visit since Russia’s devastating war on Ukraine started in March.
My name is Helen Sullivan, and I’ll be bringing you the latest. You can find me on Twitter here – ask a question and I’ll do my best to answer it.
Speaking a short while ago on CBS, congressional correspondent Scott MacFarlane explained that Zelenskiy will be addressing two audiences during his speech today.
The first is Congress as a whole, as lawmakers prepare to vote on a bill to provide tens of billions of dollars in aid to Ukraine. The second is a House Republican Conference, which will take the majority on 3 January.
“Some members have been debating whether they want to continue such robust funding for Ukraine,” McFarlane said.
Zelenskiy will be delivering his remarks in English.
It is almost 7pm in Washington, and Zelenskiy is due to begin his address in 45 minutes’ time. We’ll bring you his remarks as they happen – stay tuned.
Among the defence aid announced earlier is the formidable Patriot surface-to-air missile defence system.
Zelenskiy said the US promise to provide the system was an important step in creating an effective air shield.
“This is the only way that we can deprive the terrorist state of its main instrument of terror – the possibility to hit our cities, our energy,” Zelenskiy told a White House news conference, standing next to Biden.
The Patriot system is “a defensive system, it’s not escalatory, it’s defensive” Biden told reporters.
“We’d love not to have them used, just stop the attacks.”
The Patriot is considered to be one of the most advanced US air defense systems and offers protection against aircraft, cruise and ballistic missiles. It typically includes launchers along with radar and other support vehicles.
Writing yesterday in the Guardian, Jack Watling, senior research fellow for land warfare at the Royal United Services Institute, looked at the benefits and risks involved:
Zelenskiy also visited the US last year:
Speaking of Zelenskiy’s previous visits to the US: in 2019, he met with then-US President Donald Trump. Here is some footage from that meeting , during which Trump suggested Zelenskiy and Putin should “get together and solve your problem”.
Zelenskiy says previous visit to US feels like it was ‘in a different life’
Today’s address will also mark one of the last times Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, presides over the chamber as Speaker of the House, before Republicans take the majority on 3 January and she returns to the rank and file of her caucus.
The planning for Zelenskiy’s speech began in October, according to a Pelosi aide, when she met with Ruslan Stefanchuk, chairman of Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada. Pelosi was attending the First parliamentary summit of the International Crimea Platform in Zagreb, Croatia, at the time.
Pelosi and Zelenskiy just met and held a brief press conference.
Speaking to press in english, Zelenskiy said that while this is not his first visit to the US, his previous visit felt like “a different life”.
If you’re just joining us, my name is Helen Sullivan and I’ll be taking you through Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s address to the US Congress.
Questions? I’m on Twitter here.
Zelenskiy’s US visit so far
In his first foreign visit since the outbreak of the war in March this year, Zelenskiy has so far held a bilateral meeting with Joe Biden, after which the pair held a joint press conference.
Here are the main developments:
US president Joe Biden and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy held bilateral meetings at the White House today in which additional defence aid to Ukraine was discussed. Biden announced a new $1.58 billion aid package which will include a Patriot missile battery.
“It’s an honour to be by your side in united defense against what is a brutal, brutal war,” Biden told Zelenskiy ahead of their meeting. Zelenskiy went on to present Biden with a medal from a Ukrainian artillery captain on the frontline in Bakhmut, Ukraine.
The UN will allocate an additional $20m from the Ukraine Humanitarian Fund to support over 300 civil society organizations and volunteer groups. “These groups have always been the backbone of the humanitarian response in Ukraine and even more since the war started in late February,” said Denise Brown, the UN humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine.
In an overwhelming vote of 93-2, the Senate confirmed the appointment of Lynne M. Tracy as the new US ambassador to Russia on Wednesday. Tracy, a career diplomat of the US Foreign Service, “will be tasked with standing up to Putin,” Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer said.
Timing, optics and Ukrainian colours
The 44-year-old Zelenskiy, a former comedian and actor, also will be visiting Washington on a day that the Senate overwhelmingly confirmed a new ambassador to Russia.
The optics of Zelenskiy receiving a hero’s welcome as a defender of democracy carries a message far deeper than military aid. It is meant to signal to Russian President Vladimir Putin that the United States and its Nato allies remain steadfastly behind Ukraine, despite recent signs of impatience among some Republican lawmakers over the rising cost.
When he enters through the House chamber’s double-wooden doors, the cheers will be accented by some lawmakers wearing blue and yellow, the colours of the Ukrainian flag.
Pelosi regularly wears a US and Ukraine flag pin.
Many of the House’s 435 members and the Senate’s 100 are expected to attend.
Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer arrived on Wednesday sporting a yellow tie and blue suit. In a Senate speech he described Zelenskiy as “a leader who is fighting for his life, fighting for his country’s survival and fighting to preserve the very idea of democracy.”
Zelenskiy’s two audiences
Speaking a short while ago on CBS, congressional correspondent Scott MacFarlane explained that Zelenskiy will be addressing two audiences during his speech today.
The first is Congress as a whole, as lawmakers prepare to vote on a bill to provide tens of billions of dollars in aid to Ukraine. The second is a House Republican Conference, which will take the majority on 3 January.
“Some members have been debating whether they want to continue such robust funding for Ukraine,” McFarlane said.
Summary and welcome
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s in-person address to the US Congress.
My name is Helen Sullivan, and I’ll be taking you through the address live, providing context and analysis with the help of my colleagues in the US and abroad.
If you have questions or comments, get in touch on Twitter @helenrsullivan.
Zelenskiy will be delivering his remarks in English, as he tries to convince US lawmakers to pass a bill that will grant tens of billions of dollars of aid to Ukraine.
Republican lawmakers have shown signs of impatience with the ongoing and robust level of funding for the war and with Republicans due to take the majority in the House in 12 days, Zelenskiy’s job this afternoon in Washington is to convince them that the aid is worthwhile.
It is almost 6pm in Washington, and Zelenskiy is due to begin his address in 90 minutes’ time. Stay tuned as we tell you what to expect – and go into more detail on what is at stake.
