Ukraine Updates as Zelensky Tours North America
In February 2022, Ukraine saw the largest militarized invasion from Russia since 2014, when Russia annexed the Ukrainian territory of Crimea. Now, in an appeal for aid, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy traveled to the United States and Canada in September 2023 for one of the most significant visits since his country was invaded one-and-a-half years ago. On September 19, Zelenskyy was present at the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. The Washington Post claims, Zelensky warned that “aggression in Ukraine had dangerous spillover effects for the entire world,” including the weaponization of global food and energy sources which is in violation of the UN charter. According to The New York Times, two days later on September 21, Zelenskyy was welcomed to the White House and met with President Joe Biden to promote congressional support in the form of a $24 billion military and aid package. This followed Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki’s announcement that the country would end their shipments of weapons to Ukraine. Zelenskyy’s plea appeared especially urgent in the face of the September 21 Russian missile attack on energy facilities across the country (CNN). Reuters reported that this was the first major attack on the country’s power infrastructure in six months.
On September 22, 2023, Zelenskyy addressed the Canadian legislature as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reinforced the country’s continued support and aid to Ukrainian efforts. Recent updates from The New York Times include that of Ukraine getting access to U.S.-made Abrams Tanks, those of which arrived in Ukraine September 25, 2023. The same day, Ukrainian forces made advancements against Russian defenses, enabling Ukraine to maintain a stronger counteroffensive (NYT).
