Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy will visit Washington on Wednesday, the White House said, in his first trip out of the country since Russia invaded.
Zelenskyy is expected at the White House in the afternoon, where he will meet US president Joe Biden and senior members of his national security team before later addressing a joint session of the US Congress. The visit is the first time he has left Ukraine in more than 300 days, since the war began.
Ahead of the meeting, the Biden administration announced $1.85bn in new lethal aid for Ukraine, including the Patriot air defence system that Kyiv requested as Russia stepped up attacks on energy infrastructure.
The aid announced on Wednesday includes $1bn in weapons from US stockpiles and $850mn to purchase munitions and equipment through weapons contracts. The US has committed $21.3bn in military assistance to Ukraine since Russia invaded in February.
Zelenskyy’s short visit has been shrouded in secrecy because of security concerns. The trip, which comes as US lawmakers prepare to vote this week on an annual $1.7tn spending bill that includes nearly $45bn in assistance for the war-torn country, is intended to “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,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.
Ukraine’s president had been looking for an opportunity to travel to Washington since the summer, according to officials close to him, who said security was the biggest issue standing in the way.
Biden and Zelenskyy discussed a possible visit when they spoke on the phone on December 11, and the White House followed up with a formal invitation on Wednesday last week. Zelenskyy’s team confirmed on Sunday that he would come, said a senior Biden administration official.
Kyiv officials had said Zelenskyy wanted to tie his visit to a major request for lethal aid, such as the Patriot system, from the Biden administration.
Washington will train Ukrainian forces on how to use the Patriot missile battery in a third country, and American troops will not be in Ukraine to assist with its operation, the senior administration official said, adding that it would “take some time” to instruct troops before the system could be used.
During a visit to Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine on Tuesday, Ukrainian troops gave Zelenskyy a national flag they had signed to pass on to the US Congress for their support.
A source close to the president’s office said Ukraine’s first lady, Olena Zelenska, would not join Zelenskyy on the trip.
The visit comes after the top Republican in the House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, said it would become more difficult to pass additional assistance to Ukraine next year when his party took control of the House.
Asked whether Zelenskyy’s visit was meant to send a message to congressional Republicans, the senior Biden official said the administration was confident it would maintain bipartisan support for the effort.
“This isn’t about sending a message to a particular political party. This is about sending a message to Putin and sending a message to the world that America will be there for Ukraine for as long as it takes,” the official said.
Still, Zelenskyy’s visit could put additional pressure on House Republicans who intend to vote against the omnibus spending bill. It is expected to pass regardless, with support from House Democrats as well as bipartisan backing in the Senate.
Biden has said he would speak with Vladimir Putin if Russia’s president expressed a willingness to end the war, but officials on Tuesday said Putin had shown no interest in doing so.
The Kremlin said on Wednesday that it did not expect any positive developments or changes in Kyiv’s position on peace talks following Zelenskyy’s visit to Washington.
“The weapons supply to Ukraine continues, and their range is expanding. It leads to the conflict aggravation and does not bode Ukraine any good,” said Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.
Putin will not make his annual State of the Union address this year in 2022, Peskov said, confirming media reports. The date for his State of the Union address in 2023 was still under review, Peskov added. Putin has postponed the address only once before, in 2017.
US officials have debated the best timing and conditions for Ukraine and Russia to speak. Wednesday’s visit will aim to demonstrate Washington’s longstanding commitment to Ukraine as it faces a tough winter and beyond.
The senior administration official said: “The president is not coming with a message that is about pushing or prodding or poking Zelenskyy in any way. This is going to be a message of solidarity and support, co-ordination and alignment and making sure that we are very much putting Ukraine in the best possible position and its interests and secure its objectives.”
Additional reporting by Anastasia Stognei in Riga