Kamala Harris plans meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky in Washington

John Harney
| Bloomberg

Washington – Kamala Harris plans to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Washington next week, according to a person familiar with the matter, as the Democratic nominee seeks to broaden her foreign policy profile.

Harris strongly supported President Joe Biden’s support for Ukraine in its defense against the Russian invasion, which began in February 2022.

The meeting comes at a crucial time, as Russian forces have made some gains in a stalemated conflict heading into winter.

Zelensky is expected to push for NATO and European Union membership, economic and security agreements and continued supplies of more advanced weapons as part of his “victory plan” during his visit to the United States, according to people familiar with the matter.

He is due to present the plan to Biden when they meet on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly later this month. He also wants to share his plans with Harris and Trump.

In last week’s presidential debate, Republican nominee Donald Trump twice declined to say whether he wanted Ukraine to win the war, saying instead that he wanted the fighting to stop and for the leaders of the two countries to meet to reach an agreement.

Harris seized on Trump’s comments to say that Russian President Vladimir Putin would be “sitting in kyiv with his eyes on the rest of Europe” if Trump had not lost to President Joe Biden in 2020.

The impending meeting between Zelenskyy and Harris was reported earlier by CNN.