Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said after arriving in Washington on Wednesday he would hold talks with President Joe Biden to strengthen Kyiv's defence capabilities against Russia's devastating invasion.
Zelenskiy's political adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said earlier that the visit, his first overseas trip since Russia invaded 300 days ago, showed the deep trust between Kyiv and Washington and offered him the opportunity to explain what arms Kyiv needed.
"I will hold a series of negotiations to strengthen the resilience and defence capabilities of Ukraine," Zelenskiy said in a statement on Telegram alongside photos of him on U.S. soil as he prepared to go into talks with Biden at the White House.
"Next year, we must return the Ukrainian flag and freedom to our entire land, to all our people," he said.
Wearing his trademark olive green pants and sweater, Zelenskiy arrived at the White House. He met Biden and his wife on the lawn and Biden guided the Ukrainian president with an arm around his back.
They will participate in a joint news conference with the U.S. president and then go to Capitol Hill to address a joint session of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.
Ahead of Zelenskiy's arrival, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced the United States would provide another $1.85 billion in military aid for Ukraine including a Patriot air defence system to help it ward off barrages of Russian missiles.
Ukraine in recent weeks has come under repeated Russian missile and drone strikes targeting its energy infrastructure, leaving millions of people without electricity or running water in the dead of a freezing winter.
The Patriot is deemed to be one of the most advanced U.S. air defence systems, offering protection against attacking aircraft as well as cruise and ballistic missiles.
"...Weapons, weapons and more weapons. It is important to personally explain why we need certain types of weapons," Podolyak said. "In particular, armoured vehicles, the latest missile defence systems and long-range missiles."
Zelenskiy has made a point of staying close to his people during the war and advocating for his former Soviet state on the world stage, with daring trips to battlefronts, countless calls with world leaders and videolink speeches to parliaments and international institutions.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told MSNBC that diplomacy would be discussed with Zelenskiy, but the Ukrainian leader would be put under no pressure for peace talks.
Kirby said Washington was seeing no sign that Russian President Vladimir Putin was willing to engage in peacemaking.
"Clearly we're going to make sure that President Zelenskiy, when he leaves this country, knows that he's leaving with the full support of the United States going forward," Kirby told MSNBC in a separate interview earlier.