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External videos
External videos
	Press conference with Zelenskyy and President Joe Biden, December 21, 2022, C-SPAN
	Press conference with Zelenskyy and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, December 21, 2022, C-SPAN
	Zelenskyy's address to a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress, December 21, 2022, C-SPAN

2022 visit by Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the United States
	President Zelenskyy and President Biden hold a press conference in the East Room of the White House, 21 December 2022.
Date	December 21–22, 2022
Location	Washington, D.C., United States

On 21 December 2022, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president of Ukraine, visited the United States. During his 10-hour^[1] visit, Zelenskyy met with Joe Biden, the president of the United States, held a joint press conference, and addressed a joint session of the United States Congress. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced a US$1.85 billion military aid package for Ukraine ahead of Zelenskyy's visit.^[2] Zelenskyy's visit to Washington, D.C. is his first overseas trip since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.^[3]

Background

On 24 February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War.^[4]^[5]^[6] At the beginning of the invasion, Zelenskyy declined offers of evacuation from the United States.^[7] The United States assisted Ukraine and Zelenskyy by other means, with the U.S. giving the most assistance to Ukraine throughout the invasion of any foreign nation—around US$50 billion at the time of Zelenskyy's visit.^[8]

This was Zelenskyy's first visit to the White House, although he had met with Biden's predecessor, Donald Trump, in 2019, "on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly's opening sessions in New York."^[9]

Informal discussions about the trip began on December 11, and after the invitation was extended and accepted, planning began on December 18. Zelenskyy traveled by train to Przemyśl, Poland, where he was joined by U.S. ambassador Bridget Brink, "transported in a U.S. Embassy vehicle to an airport in Rzeszów," and then traveled, via a U.S. Air Force jet typically used by Cabinet-level officials, to Joint Base Andrews.^[1]

Visit to the United States

Meeting with Joe Biden

Zelenskyy arrived in the country from Rzeszów, Poland aboard a United States Air Force C-40B.^[10]^[11] During his visit to the United States, Zelenskyy met with the president, Joe Biden. Biden pledged a Patriot missile system for the use of Ukraine against aircraft, ballistic, and cruise missiles.^[2]^[12]^[13] The Patriot system had been previously asked for by Ukraine.^[14]

Zelenskyy presented Biden with a medal that had been awarded to a Ukrainian officer responsible for a U.S.-furnished HIMARS system "that the officer wanted Biden to have."^[15]

Speech to Congress

After meeting with Biden, Zelenskyy gave a speech, in English, to a joint session of the United States Congress. In his speech, Zelenskyy called for increased aid to Ukraine. Following his speech, Zelenskyy gave a Ukrainian flag signed by Ukrainian soldiers fighting at the Battle of Bakhmut to Vice President of the United States Kamala Harris and Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi. In return, Pelosi presented Zelenskyy with a U.S. flag, which had flown over the Capitol that day. Zelenskyy carried the flag with him as he departed the House chamber.^[16]^[17]

Pelosi later compared the visit to Winston Churchill's address to Congress,

Reaction

The Associated Press, citing a security analyst, wrote "Zelenskyy's mission of keeping America engaged is a difficult one, but he is up to the task."^[15] David Sanger of the New York Times argued that Zelenskyy's true purpose was appealing "to the minority of Republicans who are reluctant to spend more in a conflict whose end is nowhere in sight..." To this end, Zelenskyy reminded Congress that Iran's assistance to Russia might ultimately impact close U.S. ally Israel, essentially urging Congressmembers hesitant to invest more in Ukraine to see it as part of a broader defense of Western interests.^[18]

Gallery

President Zelenskyy during 2022 trip to Washington
Zelenskyy greeted by Ambassador Oksana Markarova at Joint Base Andrews
Zelenskyy greeted by President Joe Biden at the South Portico of the White House
Zelenskyy is received by President Joe Biden
Zelenskyy and Biden in the Diplomatic Reception Room
Zelenskyy and Biden in the Oval Office
Zelenskyy and Biden in the Rose Garden
Zelenskyy and Biden in a bilateral meeting in the Cabinet Room
Zelenskyy and Biden at a press conference in the East Room
Zelenskyy, Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, Andriy Yermak and Mitch McConnell at the Capitol
Zelenskyy giving a speech to a joint session of Congress
Nancy Pelosi receiving a Ukrainian flag from the Battle of Bakhmut at the end of his speech
Zelenskyy receiving a United States flag from Nancy Pelosi and Vice President Kamala Harris