Zelensky bets on long-term help from America

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has arrived in Washington for a brief and symbolic visit.

His trip was surrounded until the last minute by the greatest secrecy.

This is the first time since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24 that the Ukrainian president has left his territory (at least officially).

Zelensky, who was two days before on the front line in Bakhmout, was received on Wednesday at the White House for

with President Biden and the main officials of national security and the Administration. American.

He was then to go to the Capitol at the end of the day to address Congress, before the two Chambers united for the occasion.

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"President Zelensky has come to the United States to thank the American people for the incredible support he has received,"

a senior US administration official said.

The message, he added, is also

Read alsoZelensky's visit to Washington: the underside of the cards

But the discussions will also focus on the strategy to follow, while the war is at a turning point.

On the agenda for Biden and Zelensky's meeting are

Voting in Congress

In particular, the American president is expected to announce a new tranche of aid to Ukraine amounting to nearly 2 billion dollars.

explained the senior official, while recalling that this battery will be operated by Ukrainian forces trained

Congress was also expected to vote on an aid package for Ukraine for 2023, amounting to more than $40 billion in funding for Kyiv.

Ukraine has been a success story for the Biden Administration in foreign policy so far.

Without sending American soldiers on the ground, the United States provided the assistance necessary to stop and then repel the Russian invasion, inflicting a major strategic setback on Moscow and autocracies around the world who are closely watching the American response. , while preventing the conflict from spreading.

By marshalling and coordinating the efforts of European allies to provide decisive military assistance to Ukraine and inflict meaningful sanctions on Russia, the administration also came close to obliterating the fiasco of the evacuation from Afghanistan.

Read alsoWar in Ukraine: encouraged by his successes, Zelensky drags Washington in his wake

But since the start of the conflict, this balance has been difficult to maintain.

The prospect of an escalation and extension of the war continues to worry Washington.

The Americans only want to supply kyiv with sufficient armaments and ammunition to allow Ukraine to resist, while remaining below what would appear to be a danger for Moscow and would lead Russia to an escalation with NATO.

recalled the American Administration.

But wars are not controllable phenomena, and their rules are not written in advance.

On the 300th day of the conflict, Zelensky wants to convince the Americans that the time is right to inflict a military defeat on Russia, taking advantage of the advances of the Ukrainian forces in recent months, and before the Russian forces reorganize.

The Ukrainian delegation should thus present to the Americans a new series of requests, in particular tactical missiles Atacms, and drones Gray Eagle and Reaper, according to sources in Washington.

Atacms missiles, with a range of 300 kilometers, would allow the Ukrainians to strike the rear of Russian lines with precision, and potentially to reach Crimea, which serves as a rear base for the Russian army and navy, but also inside the territory of Russia.

The Americans have so far refused all requests from kyiv to deliver such weapons, for fear that it could trigger an escalation.

Russia warned in September.

In early December, the

revealed that the 20 Himars multiple rocket launchers supplied since June to the Ukrainian forces had been specially modified so as not to be able to fire the Atacms missiles.

The Biden Administration is quietly divided on which strategy to follow.

A more cautious current is paradoxically represented by the Pentagon and the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley, who wish to avoid an escalation and an extension of the conflict.

Another, who would rather belong to the State Department, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, believes the best way to bring Russia to the negotiating table is by him. inflict a quick military defeat.

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Zelensky is also due to deliver an important speech to both houses of Congress, weeks before the Republicans take control of the majority in the House of Representatives.

Some Republican lawmakers have begun to consider reducing aid to Ukraine, arguing that the billions of dollars spent should instead be used to strengthen the southern border of the United States, where illegal immigration is at record highs. .

The most radical, belonging to the Trumpist current, are systematically opposed to any policy pursued by the Democratic administration.

Senators and Representatives, who had started leaving Washington for Christmas, returned for this event.

Zelensky's address to Congress has been scheduled for early evening prime time and will also be addressed to the American public.

The former actor, who knows how to tap into the imagination of each country and who had already spoken in a moving video speech to Congress last March, had spoken to American elected officials about the memory of the attack on Pearl Harbor. in December 1941.