Before words, there are images. Captivating, almost implausible. At 300e day of the war ravaging Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky is there on this Wednesday, December 21, under a sparkling chandelier of the White House, in the East Room, between candlesticks and Christmas trees decorated with fake snow.
On a whirlwind visit to Washington, the Ukrainian president presents himself to the press in his usual khaki-toned clothes, with his short unkempt beard, his humanity and this seriousness that has become his burden. A seriousness imposed by the dead who escort him, the Russian destruction of which he is the clerk and by the certainty, shared by the two leaders, that the war is doomed to last. “We have to survive this winter”, Mr. Zelensky said. “Russia uses winter as a weapon, to freeze people, starve them, cut them off from each other,” added Joe Biden.
Volodymyr Zelensky made this first trip abroad since the beginning of the war at the cost of a long trip, rather than going to Warsaw, Paris or London. But Washington was the most obvious destination in view of the enormous political, military and financial support granted by the United States, which the Ukrainian leader came to greet. At his side, at the White House, Joe Biden confirmed a new envelope of military aid of 1.8 billion dollars (1.7 billion euros), which includes in particular a battery of Patriot missiles, expected for a long time. by Kyiv.
This battery “is a very important step to create a safe airspace for Ukrainereacted Volodymyr Zelensky. This is the only way for us to succeed in preventing the terrorist country and its terrorist attacks from targeting our energy sector, our people and our infrastructure”. It will first be necessary to train the teams of Ukrainian soldiers.
Erosion of support for Ukraine in American public opinion
The total amount of security assistance provided to kyiv by Washington in 2022 thus amounts to 21.9 billion dollars, pending the possible parliamentary adoption, by the end of the week, of a tranche of nearly $45 billion in aid, requiring the support of ten Republican senators alongside the Democrats. “Whatever changes in Congress [avec la nouvelle majorité républicaine issue des midterms]I believe there will be bipartisan and bicameral support,” estimated Volodymyr Zelensky, who has faith in the solidity of the American commitment.
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