President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy held an online meeting with U.S. Senators to discuss the situation at the front, the strengthening of air defense, increasing pressure on Russia, and efforts to return Ukrainian children abducted by the Russian Federation.
“On behalf of all Ukrainians, we are thankful for your bipartisan support. We are thankful to the United States, to your nation. We are thankful to President Trump for several initiatives that we will discuss today. And thank you so much for being with us all this time,” said the Head of State.
The President briefed the Senators on the frontline situation, particularly in Pokrovsk, stressing that in October, Russia suffered its highest personnel losses since the start of the full-scale invasion – over 25,000 killed. The motivation of Russian occupiers is declining, but their authorities will apply different forms of inducement, including financial ones.
According to the Head of State, Russia does not want to stop the war but is instead building up its military presence in Ukraine. Therefore, pressure on the aggressor must be intensified. Particular attention was given to the use of frozen Russian assets to protect Ukraine. The Senators announced that they, for their part, are working on this issue and preparing the relevant bill.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy also thanked the United States and President Trump personally for the sanctions already imposed and called for continued work in this direction.
“We very much want the Senate and Congress to support secondary sanctions. I know it’s a sensitive topic, but for us it is very important. And, of course, we very much need your ideas for stronger sanctions against energy,” the President said.
The Head of State also informed the Senators on the weapons Ukraine needs to defend itself against Russian aggression, including Tomahawks and enhanced air defense capabilities.
Senators Richard Blumenthal and Lindsey Graham assured that they continue to promote their bills on sanctions and on recognizing Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism should it fail to return the abducted Ukrainian children. They noted that the bill has broad bipartisan support.
During the conversation, the participants also discussed in detail the efforts to bring Ukrainian children home and the personal involvement of U.S. First Lady Melania Trump. Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that the parents of children returned through her efforts had written a letter of gratitude to the First Lady of the United States.
In addition, the Senators reaffirmed the United States’ unwavering bicameral and bipartisan support for Ukraine and commended the courage of the Ukrainian people in resisting Russian aggression.
The online meeting was attended by: Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, Chair of the U.S. Senate Budget Committee; Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee; Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee; Senator Amy Klobuchar, Chair of the U.S. Senate Democratic Steering and Policy Committee; Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse; Democratic Senator Michael Bennet; Democratic Senator Adam Schiff; and Democratic Senator Richard Durbin, the U.S. Senate Democratic Whip.