Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky Addresses Congress Regarding Russia’s Invasion

What’s the story?

• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky delivered a historic address to Congress on Wednesday to call for the U.S. to do more to help Ukraine fend off Russian military forces who invaded his country on the orders of Vladimir Putin three weeks ago.
• Zelensky delivered his remarks on video remotely from Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital city which like many other Ukrainian cities has been transformed into a warzone by the onslaught of the Russian invasion. He spoke mostly in Ukrainian but delivered the closing portion of his speech in English. 
• Foreign leaders address Congress somewhat regularly, although Zelensky’s speech is historic given that he delivered it virtually while his capital is under attack. It is somewhat reminiscent of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s address to Congress less than a month after Pearl Harbor was attacked and the U.S. entered World War II. Here are some key excerpts from Zelensky’s address to Congress:

Russia Attacking Freedom & Human Values

• Zelensky began his remarks by emphasizing the will of the Ukrainian people to resist Russia’s invasion to preserve their freedom, democracy, and human values: 

“I’m proud to greet you from Ukraine, from our capital city of Kyiv, a city that is under missile and airstrikes from Russian troops every day. But it doesn’t give up, and we have not even thought about it for a second. Just like many other cities and communities in our beautiful country which found themselves in the worst war since World War II. I have the honor to greet you on behalf of the Ukrainian people, brave and freedom-loving people who for eight years have been resisting the Russian aggression.

Those who give their best sons and daughters to stop this full-scale Russian invasion. Right now the destiny of our country is being decided. The destiny of our people, whether Ukrainians will be free, whether they will be able to preserve their democracy. Russia has attacked not just us, not just our land, not just our cities; it went on a brutal offensive against our values, basic human values. It threw tanks and planes against our freedom, against our right to live freely in our own country choosing our own future.”

• Zelensky underscored the threat posed to Ukrainian civilians by Russia’s military by playing a roughly two-minute video with some graphic images of cities destroyed by Russian shelling and airstrikes; in addition to civilians of all ages who have been killed and buried in mass graves, suffered injuries due to Russian strikes, or have been displaced due to the war; along with images of those places before Russia’s invasion.
• The video concluded with a written call to “close the sky over Ukraine” at which point Zelensky resumed his speech. (YouTube has restricted sharing of videos of Zelensky's full speech and the graphic video, but you can watch it all on YouTube here.)

Calls for No-Fly Zone & More Air-Defenses

• Much as Zelensky channeled Winston Churchill while addressing the British Parliament last week, he drew parallels between America experiencing the Pearl Harbor and September 11th attacks and Ukraine’s suffering due to the Russian invasion. He also echoed American civil rights hero Martin Luther King, Jr. in reiterating his calls for the U.S. to enforce a no-fly zone to protect Ukraine from Russian airstrikes and provide other advanced air defenses:

“Remember Pearl Harbor. The terrible morning of December 7, 1941, when your sky was black from the planes attacking you. Just remember it. Remember September 11th, a terrible day in 2001 when evil tried to turn your cities, independent territories in battlefields. When innocent people were attacked from air, yes. Just like nobody else expected it, you could not stop it.

Our country experienced the same every day… Russia has turned the Ukrainian sky into a source of death for thousands of people. Russian troops have already fired nearly 1,000 missiles at Ukraine, countless bombs, they use drones to kill us with precision. This is a terror that Europe has not seen for 80 years and we are asking for our life for an answer to this terror from the whole world.

If this is too much to ask, we offer an alternative. You know what kind of defense systems we need, S-300 and other similar systems. You know how much depends on the battlefield, on the ability to use aircraft, powerful, strong aviation to protect our people, our freedom, our land. Aircraft that can help Ukraine, help Europe and you know that they exist and you have them but they are on Earth, not in Ukraine — in the Ukrainian sky. They do not defend our people.

I have a dream, these words are known to each of you today. I can say, I have a need. I need to protect our sky. I need your decision, your help, which means exactly the same, the same you feel when you hear the words, 'I have a dream.'”

Calls for U.S. Leadership in Stopping the War

• Zelensky concluded his speech by speaking in English to the American public and the White House:

“Today the Ukrainian people are defending not only Ukraine, we are fighting for the values of Europe and the world, [inaudible] in the name of the future. That’s why today the American people are helping not just Ukraine, but Europe and the world, to keep the planet alive, to keep justice in history. Now I’m almost 45 years old. Today my age stopped when the heart of more than 100 children stopped beating.

I see no sense in life if it cannot stop the deaths. And this is my main issue as the leader of my people, great Ukrainians, and as the leader of my nation, I am addressing President Biden, you are the leader of the nation, of your great nation. I wish you to be the leader of the world. Being the leader of the world means to be the leader of peace.”

— Eric Revell