The visit of the Ukrainian first lady to Washington continues. U.S. lawmakers are set to listen to Ukraine’s First Lady Olena Zelenska during her speech on Capitol Hill on Wednesday.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi before the speech stated that Olena Zelenska will speak on behalf of all Ukrainian mothers and women.
“And I truly believe that those who depend on decision-making in the United States will hear that,” the president said.
Speaker of the House of Representatives of the US Congress Nancy Pelosi urged all members of the House of Representatives and the Senate to attend the speech, saying it would be “an important and timely opportunity to hear directly from First Lady Zelenska, learn more about the terrible losses of the Russian invasion, and express our gratitude to the people of Ukraine for their fight for democracy.”
On Tuesday, July 19, Olena Zelenska met with the first lady of the USA Jill Biden, at whose invitation she came to the USA. President of the USA Joe Biden also congratulated Zelenska.
“Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska embodies the same resilience and resilience as her country,” Biden tweeted on Tuesday. “It was an honor for Jill and I to welcome her to the White House today.”
This is the second meeting between Zelenska and Biden. Earlier this year, Biden and Zelenska met in Uzhhorod. During the tour in May, Biden visited Romania, Slovakia and Ukraine.
On Tuesday, Biden said that during the trip, Olena Zelenska introduced her to a large number of refugees and asked for help with the mental health of the affected population.
“I went back and talked to my team and I think you got my letter about what we’re doing to help with the mental health of mothers and children who, you know, have been affected by such tragedy and atrocities. And that’s why I worked on it. The team worked on it,” the first lady was quoted as saying by journalists present at the meeting on Tuesday.
The White House says Ukraine’s first lady is visiting Washington “to highlight the human cost of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.” Among the main topics of discussion is the continued support of the US to the government of Ukraine and its people, who are defending their democracy, in particular, to “deal with the significant human consequences of the Russian war, which will be felt for many years.”
“She visited Ukraine in May to personally see and communicate with those who lost their homes and loved ones due to the war. Now it’s my turn to speak in the US about Ukrainian needs in our resistance and fight against the aggressor,” the first lady of Ukraine wrote on her Facebook page.
During the visit, Olena Zelenska met with Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Samantha Power, representatives of the Ukrainian diaspora, and Ukrainians affected by the rocket fire in Kramatorsk who are being treated in the United States.
On July 23, Olena Zelenska plans to hold the second forum of first ladies and gentlemen, writes the Embassy of Ukraine in the EU. One of the sections of the summit will be held in Brussels and will be dedicated to the physical and psychological recovery of Ukrainians, the report says.
Russia’s large-scale war against Ukraine
On February 24, 2022, Russia attacked Ukraine on the ground and in the air along the entire length of the common border. The territory of Belarus was used for the invasion of Kyiv region with the intention of capturing the capital. In the south, the Russian army, in particular, occupied part of the Zaporizhia and Kherson regions, and in the north – the regions of Sumy region and Chernihiv region.
Russian President Vladimir Putin calls the full-scale invasion a “special operation.” Initially, its goal was defined as “demilitarization and denazification”, later – “protection of Donbas”.
The Russian authorities say that the army does not attack civilian objects. At the same time, Russian aviation, missile forces, navy and artillery bombard Ukrainian cities every day. Residential buildings and objects of civil infrastructure in Mariupol, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Zhytomyr, Severodonetsk, as well as in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities and villages are subject to destruction.
At the beginning of April, Ukraine and Western countries estimated Russia’s losses in the war at 15,000-20,000 killed. The Kremlin says the figure is ten times lower, although Putin’s spokesman admitted that the losses were “significant.” In March, Ukraine announced the death of 1,300 defenders. President Zelenskyi said that the ratio of losses of Ukraine and Russia in this war is “one to ten.”
Having not overcome the resistance of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the surviving Russian units withdrew from the territory of Kyiv, Chernihiv and Sumy regions in early April.
After the liberation of Kyiv region from Russian troops, facts of mass murders, torture and rape of civilians, including children, were discovered in the cities of Bucha, Irpin, Gostomel and villages of the region. Ukrainian authorities have declared that Russia is committing genocide. Western countries participate in confirming the facts of mass murders. The Russian Federation rejects accusations of war crimes, and calls the killings in Buch “a stage”.
Later, the facts of torture and murder of Ukrainian citizens began to be revealed in almost all settlements that were under Russian occupation.
As of 24:00 on June 26, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights was able to confirm 4,731 deaths and 5,900 injuries of civilians in Ukraine due to the full-scale war started by Russia. At the same time, the organization emphasizes that the real numbers are much higher.
