20th February, 2023
US President Joe Biden landed in Kyiv on Monday for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in surprise visit ahead of the first year anniversary of Russia invasion of the country.
The US president itinerary indicated that he would be visiting Poland, therefore, his visit to Ukraine’s capital has come as a surprise.
Biden is the first US president to visit Ukraine since George W. Bush in 2008.
Biden arrived in Kyiv following an hour’s long train ride from the border with Poland, according to the New York Times (NYT).
The US President and his Ukranian counterpart visited St Michael’s monastery as an air raid warning sounded across the city, in a move which the NYT said was: “a demonstration of his administration’s resolve in the face of Russia’s yearlong invasion of the country”.
Zelensky posted an image to the Telegram messaging app of him together with Mr Biden, alongside the message “Joseph Biden, welcome to Kyiv! Your visit is an extremely important sign of support for all Ukrainians.”
Zelensky spoke first thanking Americans for their support.
Biden said it’s critical that there not be any doubt about US support.
“For all the disagreement we have in our Congress on some issues, there is significant agreement on support for Ukraine. It’s not just about freedom in Ukraine, it’s about democracy at large.”
The Ukranian President revealed that he and Biden discussed long-range weapons and Biden said Ukraine will get a new military aid package worth $500 million (£415m) to be announced on Tuesday.