President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to address British parliament today at 1700 GMT
March 8, 2022, 9:16 am

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to address British parliament today at 1700 GMT

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy with Ukraine army (File photo: Volodymyr Zelenskiy official Facebook page)

The Swiss Info reported, citing Reuters, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will address British lawmakers via videolink in the House of Commons on Tuesday, the first time a president of another country has addressed the main Westminster chamber.

Zelenskiy, who has spoken to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on several occasions since Russia invaded his country, has made a number of impassioned speeches to Western leaders in the last week, asking for supplies and military support.

He will address the chamber at 1700 GMT when formal parliamentary business will be suspended. Lawmakers will be able to watch the speech on screens installed overnight, with 500 headsets providing a simultaneous translation in English.

According to the report, former world leaders including U.S. Presidents Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, and Germany's Angela Merkel, have previously made speeches in other parts of the parliamentary estate on the banks of the River Thames, including in the ornate Royal Gallery or vast Westminster Hall.

I stay in Kyiv. On Bankova Street. I’m not hiding. And I'm not afraid of anyone. As much as it takes to win this Patriotic War of ours.
Posted by Володимир Зеленський on Monday, March 7, 2022

Speaker Lindsay Hoyle said in a statement: "Every parliamentarian wants to hear directly from the president, who will be speaking to us live from Ukraine, so this is an important opportunity for the House."

"Thanks again to our incredible staff for working at pace to make this historic address possible."

Ben Wallace, Britain's defence minister, told Sky News he expected the address to be "incredibly powerful".

He said: "President Zelenskiy is the spirit of Ukraine, which is young, which is liberal thinking, which is outward facing, which is European, and that's what Russia or President (Vladimir) Putin just doesn't understand."

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The report noted that Ukraine's ambassador to London was given a very rare standing ovation when he appeared in the chamber to observe Johnson answering lawmakers' questions last week.

Source: swissinfo

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Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.