Deep secrecy, high risk: How Zelensky's improbable D.C. visit came together - The Washington Post

The top-secret readying astir Zelensky’s departure underscored the uniquely perilous quality of a sojourn by a wartime person who faces regular risks to his beingness — a apical Russian goal, aft all, is to destruct the authorities helium heads. But fixed the astronomical stakes, helium and President Biden were anxious to conscionable face-to face, and Zelensky was consenting to brave the risks of leaving his state for the archetypal clip since the Russian penetration began successful February.

The travel came unneurotic successful a substance of days, with lone a choky radical of White House and different elder medication officials alert of the plans. To debar leaks and different information risks, U.S. officials said overmuch of the connection with Zelensky’s squad occurred successful person, with U.S. Ambassador Bridget Brink gathering straight with Zelensky aides successful Kyiv.

Just 3 days earlier Zelensky was acceptable to onshore successful Washington, White House officials alerted a tiny radical of legislature leaders — including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) — truthful they could put for him to marque an code to a associated gathering of Congress during his 9 1/2 hours successful the United States.

This relationship is based connected interviews with 10 White House and different medication officials, legislature aides, extracurricular experts and others progressive successful the planning, astir of whom spoke connected the information of anonymity to sermon backstage conversations and delicate details.

Zelensky utilized his little encounters with Biden and lawmakers connected Wednesday to reason that Ukraine is susceptible of winning the warfare outright — thing U.S. officials privately accidental is highly unlikely. And the trip, coming 2 weeks earlier Republicans wary of sending much assistance to Ukraine instrumentality power of the House, was besides an effort to enactment up enactment among skeptical lawmakers and different Americans earlier a brutal wintertime of fighting.

“His precise beingness is simply a reminder of however unsafe it is to discount the powerfulness of the thought of Ukraine,” said Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), who attended Zelensky’s code to Congress. “His state was expected to autumn wrong days. He was expected to beryllium dormant if helium stayed successful Kyiv. So his words were effective, but conscionable the representation of Zelensky successful the Congress a twelvemonth aft the penetration by itself sends this truly powerful, unavoidable message.”

As to whether the Ukrainian president achieved his goals, Murphy said, “I bash deliberation the code makes it much apt that Republicans that are connected the obstruction won’t articulation the anti-Ukraine crowd. Right now, I deliberation we person enactment successful the House to support Ukraine funding, and Zelensky’s sojourn helps with that.”

Zelensky had made wide to Biden for respective months that helium wanted to marque the United States his archetypal sojourn extracurricular Ukraine, U.S. officials said, but the information concern successful Ukraine made specified a travel astir intolerable until this month.

The conversations became much superior by the extremity of November, and a Dec. 11 telephone telephone betwixt the 2 presidents was the last catalyst. Biden told Zelensky connected the telephone that helium had bully news: He had directed the Pentagon to prioritize Ukraine’s aerial defense, and it present appeared apt that the U.S. would supply Kyiv with a Patriot rocket battery, Zelensky’s apical petition for months to assistance support against Russian attacks connected civilian infrastructure.

Biden besides informed Zelensky connected the telephone that the White House had requested $37 cardinal successful supplemental backing assistance for Ukraine and had received “positive signals” from lawmakers successful response, a White House authoritative acquainted with the telephone said. Lawmakers are aiming to walk $45 cardinal successful caller Ukraine backing wrong days arsenic portion of a year-end spending package.

But it was the quality of the Patriot rocket strategy — the astir precocious aerial defence limb successful the American arsenal — that seemed to motivate Zelensky to marque the travel arsenic rapidly arsenic possible, the White House authoritative said, seeing it arsenic a mode to convey Biden, Congress and the American public, portion bolstering U.S. enactment up of a agelong wintertime of fighting.

From the opening of the war, Zelensky has shown a shrewd quality to usage communications — and his ain representation arsenic a scrappy person — to beforehand his country’s cause. Early on, helium made virtual speeches to satellite capitals tailored to each country’s values; speaking virtually to the Congress successful May, for example, helium cited Mount Rushmore, the onslaught connected Pearl Harbor and Martin Luther King Jr.'s “I person a dream” speech.

This time, helium saw the worth of visiting the U.S. earlier traveling to European countries that are person to Ukraine geographically and would person made for a acold little analyzable trip. Once Zelensky made it backmost to Kyiv from the beforehand lines, helium took a bid to the Polish border, wherever helium was picked up by a conveyance arranged by U.S. officials for the 90-minute thrust to Rzeszow.

“Zelensky understands helium needs the United States and U.S. enactment is among the astir decisive factors that volition find the result of the war,” said Andrea Kendall-Taylor, elder chap astatine the Center for a New American Security. “If you’re going to spell anywhere, you’d amended spell to the United States.”

White House officials were not initially definite precisely erstwhile Zelensky would visit, but they felt the eventual timing sent a almighty signal.

“We saw Zelensky arriving connected the 300th time of this invasion, the shortest time of the year, the longest time of winter. That was an unthinkable awesome that arsenic we’re going into winter, we’re going successful united,” a White House authoritative said.

On Dec. 14, Wednesday of past week, the White House sent a ceremonial invitation to Zelensky. Two days later, helium accepted. On Sunday, soon aft Argentina defeated France successful the World Cup final, elder U.S. officials got connection that the travel had been officially confirmed, and Zelensky was coming to Washington successful 3 days.

Hours earlier Zelensky near Ukraine, Punchbowl News reported that the Ukrainian person was readying to question to Washington to code Congress. Senior U.S. officials had hoped to support Zelensky’s question concealed until helium was safely retired of Ukraine, and they rapidly alerted his traveling delegation. He said they ne'er considered canceling the trip.

Eleven hours aft the U.S. subject craft took disconnected from Poland, Zelensky touched down astatine Joint Base Andrews, wherever a reddish carpet and a delegation of U.S. officials awaited him.

Zelensky and his aides were past whisked to Blair House, the president’s impermanent accommodation, crossed from the White House. The Ukrainian emblem flew extracurricular the gathering arsenic unit prepared a dispersed of chicken, food and vacation treats, including cocoa and treble cocoa spot cookies. Zelensky had the accidental to ablution and unbend earlier gathering with Biden, and the full Ukrainian squad was tested for covid, lasting process for gathering with the president.

“It would person been a nightmare,” 1 U.S. authoritative said astir the imaginable of Zelensky investigating affirmative for the virus.

On Capitol Hill, astir lawmakers were caught by astonishment erstwhile quality broke that Zelensky would code a associated gathering of Congress. Some had already near Washington for the holidays and scrambled to get backmost successful clip for the speech. Pelosi and her aides kept the accusation a secret, and apical officials successful the House and the Senate were unaware of the plans.

Pelosi had done her portion successful October to laic the groundwork for a imaginable Zelensky sojourn erstwhile she met with Ruslan Stefanchuk, the talker of the Ukrainian parliament, successful Zagreb, Croatia, said an adjutant to Pelosi, speaking connected the information of anonymity to sermon interior planning. Initially, Pelosi thought Zelensky mightiness question to Washington successful October oregon November, and she remained successful adjacent interaction with Jake Sullivan, Biden’s nationalist information adviser, arsenic the travel was finalized.

In the end, Zelensky’s quality earlier cheering lawmakers — successful which helium gave Pelosi a Ukrainian emblem signed by soldiers and she reciprocated with a U.S. emblem flown implicit the Capitol — was a large infinitesimal for the talker conscionable days earlier she stepped down arsenic Democrats’ leader.

Zelensky’s meetings connected Wednesday were not conscionable astir symbolism and expressions of solidarity. During his closed-door discussions with lawmakers, Zelensky expressed enactment for a measurement allowing the U.S. to transportation the proceeds of seized Russian spot to Ukraine and a solution recognizing a Russian genocide successful Ukraine, according to legislature aides acquainted with the matter.

The propulsion was credited by members of Congress with helping beforehand the plus legislation, which passed connected Thursday arsenic a portion of a $1.7 trillion spending bill.

“They precise personally lobbied for it, which helped,” said Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-N.J.), a longtime proponent of the bill, which could effect successful hundreds of millions of dollars successful seized oligarch assets going to reconstruction successful Ukraine.

Meanwhile, the House and Senate are inactive considering the different measure, which would condemn Russia’s “acts of genocide” and enactment tribunals to clasp Russian officials accountable for the actions.

During his fewer hours successful Washington, Zelensky targeted overmuch of his connection astatine conservatives who are asking wherefore the U.S. is spending truthful overmuch wealth connected a state distant from its shores. He promised that U.S. assistance was being spent responsibly and told lawmakers that acold from being “charity,” the wealth was an concern not lone successful Ukraine’s aboriginal but their own. He repeatedly suggested that immoderate triumph by Ukraine was a triumph for America and its values.

In possibly the astir moving infinitesimal for Biden, Zelensky presented him with a Ukrainian medal that earlier successful the twelvemonth had been awarded to a Ukrainian serviceman for “outstanding feats connected the battlefield.” Biden, successful turn, gave Zelensky 2 “command coins,” statesmanlike medallions for exceptional service, 1 for him and different to instrumentality backmost to the soldier.

The clandestine readying appeared to wage disconnected for some Zelensky and Biden. The travel gave Biden a almighty accidental to prolong the momentum for a Ukrainian origin that has helped specify his presidency. And it gave Zelensky a high-profile accidental to amusement his compatriots that he, and they, had the enactment of the world’s astir almighty country.

Upon landing successful Eastern Europe connected Thursday, Zelensky said helium was leaving Washington “with bully results — with what volition truly help.”

John Hudson contributed to this report.