Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky plans to visit Washington on Wednesday on his first trip abroad since the start of the Russian invasion last February.
The news was reported by the US media, which attributed it to senior officials of the Joe Biden Administration.
According to these sources, Zelenski's destination will be both the White House, where he will meet the President of the United States, and the Capitol.
The visit, which has been kept secret for security reasons and has not yet been officially confirmed, comes at a time when Congress in Washington is considering the approval of $45 billion in military aid to Ukraine and as the United States prepares to send Patriot surface-to-air missiles to help kyiv stand up to Russian aggression.
That latest funding package would be the largest infusion of US government money to date and would guarantee aid for the coming months of war in Europe.
On Capitol Hill, Zelenski is expected to meet with leaders of both parties and also to address members of the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Nancy Pelosi, who is spending her last days as speaker of the Lower House, announced on Tuesday an extraordinary session for Wednesday night with a "very special focus on democracy."
The announcement, which added no further information, came in the form of a letter.
“We are ending a very important legislature of the 117th Congress with a bill that promises progress for the American people and supports our democracy,” Pelosi wrote in a text advising lawmakers not to miss the occasion.
This Tuesday, Zelensky grabbed the headlines for another trip, perhaps the most risky in the 300 days of war.
The Ukrainian president has traveled to Bakhmut, a city in the Donetsk region of Donbas, where the heaviest fighting is taking place across the country, as part of a surprise appearance.
In a video released by his office of the visit to Bakhmut, Zelensky holds up a Ukrainian flag and alludes to his intention to hand it over to American leaders.
“The guys handed us our beautiful Ukrainian flag with their signatures for us to pass on,” the president says in the recording.
“We are not in an easy situation.
The enemy is increasing his troops.
Our people are braver and need more powerful weapons.
We'll pass it on from the boys to Congress, to the President of the United States.
We are grateful for your support, but it is not enough.
It's something, but it's not enough."
Zelenski's appearance in Bakhmut was interpreted as an attempt to raise the morale of some troops that in recent weeks have suffered significant losses there.
And it comes when his government has warned that Russia could be preparing for another offensive in early 2023. It seems clear that the Ukrainian leader is determined to deal with that offensive with a lightning trip to Washington.
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