US President Joe Biden tells Volodymyr Zelensky that ‘Russia will not win’
US President Joe Biden meets with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House for talks on Kyiv’s ‘winning strategy’ against Moscow. Biden promised Zelensky that ‘Russia will not win.’
“Russia won’t win. At the White House, after meeting with Zelensky, Biden told him Ukraine “is going to do okay and we are going to be with you all the way.” Zelensky, in his usual military garb. As he stood at the White House, Zelensky showed President Joe Biden and Vice President Harris what he called a “victory” plan. The aid to Kyiv, facing its most serious crisis since the outbreak of war in eastern Ukraine in 2014, includes a new package worth about $8 billion in military assistance laid out by Biden.
“Surrender” Approach Toward Ukraine
While Donald Trump, Kamala Harris’s opponent in the US election, said he would meet with the president of Ukraine despite their acrimonious disagreement over the conflict with Russia, the Republican also attacked Trump’s “surrender” approach toward Ukraine. Harris, who had Zelensky at her side, said that “some in my country would instead force Ukraine to give up large parts of its sovereign territory,” without specifically mentioning Trump.
These suggestions are identical to those made by Vladimir Putin, the president. To be clear, they are not suggestions for achieving peace. Rather, she said, “They are surrender proposals,” making reference to the Russian president. In a second discussion with Zelensky in the Oval Office, Biden promised that “Russia will not prevail” in the conflict it initiated in February 2022. Biden said, “Ukraine will win, and we’ll be here for you every step of the way.”
Zelensky said, “We deeply appreciate that Ukraine and America have stood side by side,” while sporting his signature military attire. However, Zelensky is navigating the turbulent seas of an election for US president on November 5th, which has the potential to undermine the steadfast backing Washington has given him over the last 2.5 years.
“Make an Arrangement.”
On the eve of Zelensky’s visit, Trump, who has long been dismissive of the US government’s billion-dollar backing for Ukraine, accused Zelensky of not wanting to reach a compromise with Moscow. However, when the argument seemed to ruin the meeting, Trump declared that he and Zelensky would speak on Friday in Trump Tower in New York.
The Republican told reporters in New York, “President Zelensky has asked to meet with me, and I will be meeting with him tomorrow morning at around 9:45.” Additionally, Trump reiterated his long-standing assertion that he will quickly broker a peace agreement, which Kyiv believes would require giving up territory that Moscow has already taken.
“I think I can quickly and successfully broker a deal between President Putin and President Zelensky,” he said. Additionally, he seemed to be upset by Zelensky’s recent remarks to The New Yorker magazine, in which the head of Ukraine expressed his opinion that Trump “doesn’t really know how to stop the war.”
Republicans are particularly furious with Zelensky for visiting a weapons plant in the Pennsylvania battleground state of Biden’s hometown, where she accused the Ukrainian ambassador of planning a politicized event and demanded her dismissal.
“They Defeated Napoleon.”
In a speech earlier this week, Trump reiterated many of Putin’s talking points, claiming that Russia “beat Hitler; they beat Napoleon; that’s what they do” and that Ukraine could not prevail. Prior to the 2020 election, Trump also requested possibly harmful political materials on Biden from Zelensky when he was president; this request resulted in the first of the Republican leader’s two impeachments.
Given that Ukraine is facing an increasingly challenging position on the battlefield against Russia, Biden seems to be making every effort to undermine Trump’s support for the country. In an effort to “win this war,” he promised roughly $8 billion in military assistance on Thursday. Of that amount, $5.5 billion must be approved before the US fiscal year ends on Monday.
In addition, Biden, whose tenure expires in January, requested an October gathering of allies in Germany. But Zelensky’s chances of obtaining authorization to launch long-range missiles manufactured in the West onto Russian territory were downplayed by the White House. Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, “I’m not expecting there to be any new announcements.”
Zelensky earlier this week made a bold speech to the UN General Assembly and addressed the US Congress. Moscow has started to rattle its nuclear cannons again as a result of Zelensky’s visit. Putin said on Wednesday that Moscow will be expanding the guidelines for using its atomic weapons in the case of a “massive” air strike.
