Ukrainian leader receives several ovations as he vows country will never surrender
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday that "against all odds" Ukraine still stands, as he paid a defiant wartime visit to Washington to thank U.S. leaders and "ordinary Americans" for their support in fighting off Russia's invasion and pledged there would be "no compromises" in trying to bring an end to the war.
U.S. President Joe Biden and Congress responded with billions of dollars in new assistance and a pledge to help Ukraine pursue a "just peace."
Zelenskyy received a thunderous ovation from legislators during an address at the U.S. Capitol, declaring that Ukraine "will never surrender" and warning that the stakes of the conflict were greater than just the fate of his nation — that democracy worldwide is being tested.
"This battle cannot be ignored, hoping that the ocean or something else will provide protection," he said, speaking in English for what he had billed as a "speech to Americans."
Earlier Wednesday, Biden welcomed Zelenskyy to the Oval Office, saying the United States and Ukraine would continue to project a "united defence" as Russia wages a "brutal assault on Ukraine's right to exist as a nation." Zelenskyy, on his first known trip outside his country since Russia invaded in February, said he wanted to visit earlier and his visit now showed the "situation is under control, because of your support."
Zelenskyy, speaking in English, thanked Biden with "all my heart" and presented him with a medal that had been awarded to the Ukrainian captain of a HIMARS battery, a rocket system provided by the U.S.
"He's very brave, and he said, 'Give it to a very brave president,'" Zelenskyy said.
Biden called the gift "undeserved but much appreciated."
Sitting together in the Oval Office at the White House, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked U.S. President Joe Biden, as well as 'ordinary Americans,' for the support they've shown to the people of Ukraine. He then gave Biden a cross of military merit from a Ukrainian fighter.
The highly sensitive trip is taking place after 10 months of a brutal war that has seen tens of thousands killed and wounded on both sides of the conflict, along with devastation for Ukrainian civilians.
Zelenskyy's visit was meant to reinvigorate support for his country in the U.S. and around the world, amid concerns that allies are growing weary of the costly war and its disruption to global food and energy supplies.
Americans need to hear directly from Zelenskyy: Biden
Pressed on how Ukraine would try to bring an end to the conflict, Zelenskyy rejected Biden's framing of a "just peace," saying, "For me as a president, 'just peace' is no compromises." He said the war would end once Ukraine's sovereignty, freedom and territorial integrity were restored, as well as the "payback for all the damages inflicted by Russian aggression."