WASHINGTON: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to reach Capitol Hill in the upcoming week as he visits the US for the United Nations General Assembly meeting.
His visit comes as Congress is debating providing as much as $21 billion in military and humanitarian aid for Ukraine in its counteroffensive against the Russia.
Zelensky is scheduled to hold a meeting with President Joe Biden at the White House on the upcoming Thursday, Independent reported.
Zelensky’s visit in December 2022
The Ukrainian President made a visit to Washington in December 2022 during wartime, where he delivered an impassioned address to a joint session of Congress.
During that visit, he expressed gratitude to the American people for their contributions to funding the war effort, emphasizing that this financial support should not be viewed as charity but rather as an investment in global security and democracy.
Detailed arrangements for Zelensky’s forthcoming visit next week have not yet been disclosed to the public. The issue of providing additional funding for Ukraine has become a source of increasing division within the Congress.
President Biden has proposed a comprehensive aid package comprising $13 billion in additional military assistance for Ukraine and $8 billion for humanitarian support. However, conservative Republican lawmakers are pushing for extensive federal spending cuts, with some specifically advocating to halt financial aid to Ukraine as Congress works toward passing its annual appropriations bills before the September 30 deadline to maintain the functioning of the U.S. government.
