House Speaker Nancy Pelosi led a congressional delegation to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, this weekend.
This trip makes Pelosi the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit Ukraine during the ongoing Russian invasion. NBC News reported that to many, this trip came as a surprise and that it provided further evidence of the West’s growing support for Ukraine’s fight against Russia.
The trip comes as Russian forces continue to refocus their military campaign in the eastern regions of Ukraine and struggle to make any significant territorial gains, while Ukraine’s allies increase their material support of the invaded nation by sending increasing quantities of military supplies.
Despite the influx of material aid, the Ukrainian military is receiving, the Russians are not backing down as it appears that both sides of the conflict are preparing for the conflict to go on for longer.
During a meeting with Ukrainian officials, Pelosi said, “We are visiting you to say thank you for your fight for freedom. Your fight is a fight for everyone, and so our commitment is to be there for you until the fight is done.”
Zelenskyy said he was “very grateful for this powerful signal of support.”
The Ukrainian president also said, “This shows that the United States today is a leader in strong support for Ukraine during the war against the aggression of the Russian Federation.”
Pelosi’s delegation consisted entirely of Congressional Democrats. It consisted of Reps. Jason Crow of Colorado, Jim McGovern of Massachusetts, Gregory Meeks from New York, and Adam Schiff from California.
The delegation’s trip marks the second major visit made by American officials to Ukraine in the month of April.
Earlier this month U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin met with Zelenskyy to discuss U.S. aid to Ukraine. In their meeting, the diplomats told Zelenskyy that the U.S. was prepared to provide Ukraine with $300 million in military financing and had also approved a $165 million sale of ammunition, that was not made in the U.S., that would be compatible with Ukraine’s Soviet-era weaponry.
The U.S. and many of its European allies pledge to send shipments of defensive munitions to Ukraine to aid the country in warding off future Russian advances into the country.
Much like the surprise visits by the American delegations, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson held a meeting with Zelenskyy earlier this month where the two men discussed European sanctions on Russia and Great Britain’s commitment to supplying Ukraine with materials needed for defense.