Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Ukraine's First Lady Olena Zelenska July 18, kicking off a series of high-profile appearances she was making in Washington, D.C.
During talks with Zelenska, Bilnken strongly condemned Russia's brutal attacks on Ukraine, and in particular, Russia's July 14 strike on the city of Vinnytsya which killed three children, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said, according to a July 18 news release.
“Met today with Ukraine’s First Lady Olena Zelenska to discuss the immense humanitarian costs of President Putin’s war,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a July 18 post on Twitter. “The United States remains committed to helping the people of Ukraine defend themselves from Russia, secure justice and rebuild their country.”
Zelenska's meeting with Blinken was the first of multiple high-profile appearances in the U.S. capital, according to AP News. In addition to meeting with Blinken, she also met with the head of the U.S Agency for International Development, Samantha Power. AP News reported Power's agency provided billions of dollars to Ukraine to help support the government, humanitarian needs and mitigate effects from the global food shortage.
AP News also reported First Lady Zelenska also planned to meet with U.S First Lady Jill Biden while she is in Washington, D.C. The two had met previously in May, when Zelenska greeted Biden on her surprise visit to western Ukrain. During their meeting, the two met at a school where they helped school kids construct tissue-paper bears as Mother's Day gifts.
