This will be a great moment in the war in Ukraine.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has addressed world leaders and meetings by video throughout the conflict, but his visit to the United States it is the first time he has left the country since the invasion of Russia.
There will be security risks, but they should not be exaggerated as world leaders have safely come and gone from Kyiv so he can come and go.
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Yesterday, Mr. Zelenskyy visited the most dangerous place in the world, the frontline town of Bakhmut, where one of the fiercest battles of this war is being fought.
Meeting with frontline troops, Zelenskyy received a Ukrainian flag signed by soldiers, saying he would take it to Washington as a reminder of the help Ukrainians need.
There is a strong sense here that the West has underestimated the threat Russia poses, not so much on the battlefield, but to Ukraine’s vital energy supply.
It has not given Ukraine the means to repel waves of drones and missiles that are wreaking havoc on the country’s power grid.
We have seen the result first hand.
Every city in the country is facing power outages or severe power restrictions. If this continues, Ukrainian civilians will freeze to death during the winter, possibly in large numbers.
There is also a feeling that the West is giving Ukraine enough weapons to continue this war, but not to end it.
Fears persist that, after months of catastrophic mistakes, the Russians may finally get their act together under a new commander and with tens of thousands of new recruits.
The newly mobilized are poorly motivated, equipped and trained. However, Russian commanders have always relied on quantity, not quality.
Photo: AP
In Bakhmut they are sending in waves of troops, who seem to be slaughtered by the hundreds a day, but the relentless assault is taking its toll on Ukraine.
If the West wants Russia to lose this war, it will have to do much more.
Zelenskyy knows there are complaints, particularly on the American political right, about the amount of aid being given to his country.
This is your chance to meet American politicians of all stripes, look them in the eye, and say you need more help; Otherwise, the freedom they say they value so highly is in jeopardy, and not just in Ukraine.
