According to the White House, the first ladies “will discuss the United States’ continued support for the government of Ukraine and its people as they defend their democracy and address the significant human impact of Russia’s war, which will be felt for the next years. .” Zelenska will first take part in a private meeting with Biden, followed by an extended bilateral meeting with second in command Douglas Emhoff, US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, US Agency for International Development Deputy Administrator Isobel Coleman, Under Secretary Foreign Policy Toria Nuland and US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy. During the bilateral meeting, the White House says, the first ladies “will discuss how the United States can continue to relieve pain through support and humanitarian assistance to the Ukrainian people and the need to hold accountable those responsible for war crimes and other atrocities. ” Biden and Zelenska first met in person in May, when Biden made a secret trip to Ukraine. The first ladies had been in touch before their meeting, which was the first time Zelenska had come out of hiding since the start of the Russian invasion in February. During their hour-long closed-door meeting, Zelenska shared with Biden her concerns about the emotional health of Ukraine’s children. In his opening remarks to welcome Zelenska to the White House, Biden recalled that visit. “When I came back, one of the things I said was you can’t go to a war zone and come back and not feel the sadness and the pain of the people I met,” Biden said in the Blue Room alongside other US officials. “You asked me then to talk about mental health issues and so, I went back and talked to my team,” he continued. “I believe you received my letter about what we are doing to help with the mental health of mothers and children who have actually suffered such tragedy and atrocities, and so I am working on that. The team is working on it.” Biden said each of the agencies in the room would tell Zelenska what specifically they were working on to address her concerns. Zelenska is in Washington this week to highlight the human cost of Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine. He met with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and USAID Administrator Samantha Power on Monday and is scheduled to make remarks to members of Congress on Capitol Hill Wednesday morning. State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement Monday that Blinken, at the meeting, “stressed the United States’ overall and continuing commitment to support Ukraine’s victory in Russia’s unjust and unprovoked war.” Blinken and Zelenska also spoke about the huge and growing human cost of Russia’s large-scale invasion. Zelenska’s visit to the White House comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky fired several high-ranking officials from Ukraine’s intelligence service, the SBU. Among those dismissed is the deputy head of the SBU, Volodymyr Horbenko. Zelensky also dismissed the heads of regional offices in Dnipropetrovsk, Poltava, Sumy, Zakarpattia and Zhytomyr. Zelensky also recently suspended the head of the SBU, Ivan Bakanov, and tabled a resolution in the Ukrainian parliament for his dismissal, launching an investigation into the presence of Russian collaborators within the ranks of his organization. While the thrust of the Russian offensive in Ukraine is centered on the Donbass region, Zelenska’s visit focused on the human cost of the war as well as missile attacks have increased in southern Ukraine. Nataliya Humeniuk, a spokeswoman for the Ukrainian military’s Southern Operational Command, said six Russian Kalibr missiles struck a village in the Odesa region, hitting residential buildings near a school and a cultural center. Six people were injured. Humeniuk also said the Russians are using civilians as human shields, “as well as to keep them on this ground for the so-called referendum.” “The occupiers are gradually releasing people to Zaporizhia,” he said. CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story misstated the day of the week Zelenska visited the White House. CNN’s Olga Voitovych and Tim Lister contributed to this report.
