President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the information about the visit of his American counterpart Joe Biden to Kyiv.
“Joseph Biden, welcome to Kyiv! Your visit is an extremely important manifestation of support for all Ukrainians,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized.
In turn, the White House commented on the meeting between Biden and Zelenskyy.
“I will announce another shipment of critical equipment, including artillery munitions, anti-tank systems, and air surveillance radars, to help protect the Ukrainian people from aerial bombardment.
And I will share that later this week we will announce additional sanctions against elites and companies that try to evade or engage the Russian war machine,” the White House said in a statement on its website.
After his visit to Kyiv, the US president will travel to Poland.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked his American counterpart Joseph Biden for the support of the Ukrainian people.
“Joseph Biden, thank you for the support of our people!” he wrote in his telegram channel.
According to the Ukrainian commander-in-chief, “this visit is carried out on the eve of the new year, which can be extremely important for Ukraine.”
“I’m sure that together we can achieve significant results,” Zelensky stressed.
As reported, Biden and First Lady Jill Biden welcomed the president of Ukraine to the White House on the South Lawn. Biden said that the American people, both Democrats and Republicans, were proud to support Ukrainians.
U.S. President Joe Biden will greet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House on Wednesday, December 21, at 21.00 Kyiv time.
The relevant information was published in the public agenda of the President of the United States.
At 21.30 Kyiv time, President Biden will host a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Zelensky. At 23.30, Biden and Zelensky are expected to hold a joint press conference.
U.S. President Joe Biden will announce about $2 billion in aid to Ukraine on Wednesday, the White House said.
“President Biden will announce a significant new aid package to Ukraine of approximately $2 billion,” the White House said in a statement.
As part of the package, the U.S. will reportedly provide Ukraine with a battery of Patriot SAMs, “which will be an important asset to protect the Ukrainian people from barbaric Russian attacks on Ukraine’s critical infrastructure.”
“We will train the Ukrainian military on how to operate a Patriot missile battery in a third country. It will take some time, but the Ukrainian military will return after training to their own country to operate that battery,” a senior White House official stressed.
The U.S. will also continue to prioritize other forms of air defense support, including NASAMS, HAWKs, Stingers, and anti-drone equipment.
In addition, the official said the visit will also be an opportunity to note work with Congress to pass a significant supplemental funding package for Ukraine for 2023.
“And we expect a bipartisan package of more than $40 billion in funding for Ukraine,” he said.
Zelensky said earlier that he had traveled to the United States to strengthen Ukraine’s resilience and defense capabilities. “In particular, with Joe Biden will discuss cooperation between Ukraine and the United States. I will also speak in Congress and hold a number of bilateral meetings,” he wrote on Twitter.
This is the first visit of the President of Ukraine abroad since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Russia.
For its part, Politico reported on Wednesday, citing sources, that the Ukrainian delegation during the visit to the USA will ask for ATACMS missiles, as well as drones Gray Eagle and Reaper.
US President Joe Biden has asked Congress to allocate an additional $37.7 billion in aid to Ukraine, AP reported.
The information notes that $21.7 billion is defense aid to continue providing Ukraine with equipment and restocking the Defense Department.
The Biden administration is asking for $14.5 billion for humanitarian aid and support for the functioning of the Ukrainian government, as well as $900 million for health care and support services for Ukrainians living in the United States, and $626 million to support Ukrainian nuclear security and modernize the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
It is necessary to achieve an extension of the Istanbul food deal, as this will help feed the world, US President Joe Biden said during a speech at the UN General Assembly on Wednesday.
“I am grateful for the work of the UN, including the leadership of Secretary General António Guterres, thanks to which it was possible to create a mechanism that allows exporting grain from Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea … We need to ensure that it is extended,” Biden said during of his speech, noting “faith in the need to feed the world”.
The US President added that Russia is trying to blame the food crisis on the sanctions that Western countries have imposed against it. However, according to him, “our sanctions regimes quite clearly allow Russia to export food and fertilizers.”
Biden also said the US will donate $2.9 billion in humanitarian aid and food security assistance this year.
