McConnell visits Zelenskyy in Kyiv
WASHINGTON — Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell and a delegation of GOP senators met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv during an unannounced visit Saturday, delivering the latest show of American solidarity with the country at war with Russia.
“Our delegation reaffirmed to President Zelenskyy that the United States stands squarely behind Ukraine and will sustain our support until Ukraine wins this war,” McConnell said in a statement released after the delegation had left Ukraine.
A video posted on Zelenskyy’s Telegram account showed McConnell, R-Ky., and Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, John Barrasso of Wyoming and John Cornyn of Texas greeting him in the capital. Zelenskyy, in an Instagram post, called the visit “a strong signal of bipartisan support for Ukraine from the United States Congress and the American people.”
Meanwhile, Russian troops were withdrawing from around Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv, after bombarding it for weeks, Ukraine said Saturday.
Ukraine’s military said the Russian forces were focusing on guarding supply routes while launching strikes in province of Donetsk.
Putin warns Finnish leader
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned his Finnish counterpart Saturday that relations could be “negatively affected” if Finland follows through with plans to apply for NATO membership.
Finland President Sauli Niinisto’s office said in a statement that he told Putin how starkly Finland’s security environment had changed after Moscow’s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine. “The discussion was straightforward and unambiguous and was held without exaggeration. Avoiding tensions was considered important,” said Niinisto, who stressed that Finland wants to continue to deal with Moscow “in a professional manner.”