Olena Zelenska, Ukraine’s first woman, declined a White Home invitation to attend President Biden’s State of the Union tackle on Thursday, her workplace stated, citing a scheduling battle.
“As a result of scheduled occasions, together with a go to of kids from an orphanage to Kyiv, which was deliberate prematurely, the primary woman will sadly not be capable of attend the occasion,” Tetiana Haiduchenko, Ms. Zelenska’s press secretary, stated on Wednesday.
Yulia Navalnaya — the widow of the Russian opposition chief Alexei A. Navalny, who died in a Russian jail final month — was additionally invited to the tackle however is unable to attend, the White Home stated on Tuesday.
The invitation to Ms. Zelenska, and the truth that she was unable to make it, have been reported Tuesday night by The Washington Put up.
The White Home hoped to have each ladies on the speech as an indication of the battle for freedom and a present of resistance to Russia’s president, Vladimir V. Putin, in accordance with an individual aware of the planning for the tackle. Officers additionally believed that having each ladies there could be a robust image of how excessive the stakes are to these opposing additional assist to Ukraine.
Mr. Biden has been urgent Republicans in Congress to approve a $60 billion navy and monetary assist bundle for Ukraine, and he’s anticipated to make an enormous push for continued assist in his tackle Thursday night time.
Dealing with setbacks on the battlefield, Ukraine has stated it urgently wants American navy assist to maintain up its protection.
Ms. Zelenska’s resolution to not attend Mr. Biden’s speech contrasts with Kyiv’s standard readiness to place representatives on the worldwide scene to rally assist for the war-torn nation. She and her husband, President Volodymyr Zelensky, have traveled extensively all over the world since Russia’s full-scale invasion started two years in the past, attending award ceremonies, diplomatic conferences and presidential inaugurations.
However current journeys by Ukrainian officers to america have yielded few outcomes. Mr. Zelensky left Washington empty-handed in December after assembly with Mr. Biden and Congress members whom he hoped to steer to unblock a $60 billion assist bundle.
Anatoly Kurmanaev and Oleksandra Mykolyshyn contributed reporting.
