The fight for freedom in Ukraine is a fight for Ukraine and for freedom everywhere. #SlavaUkraini pic.twitter.com/Ueomwj4Urk
— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) May 1, 2022
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) made an unannounced visit to Kyiv along with Democratic lawmakers and met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
In a video posted by Zelensky on Sunday, Pelosi could be seen walking with the Ukrainian leader on the streets with lawmakers, including Reps. Adam B. Schiff (Calif.), Jim McGovern (Mass.), Gregory W. Meeks (N.Y.) and Jason Crow (Colo.). “We are visiting you to say thank you for your fight for freedom. … Your fight is a fight for everyone,” Pelosi told Zelensky. “So our commitment is to be there for you until the fight is done.”
The trip had not been publicized before Zelensky shared visuals on Sunday, with a caption praising the United States for being a leader in support of Ukraine. “Thank you for helping to protect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our state!” he wrote on Twitter.
The visit came as civilian evacuations from a Mariupol steel plant that has been the last base for Ukrainian fighters in the besieged port city were expected to continue Sunday, after a group of about 20 women and children were allowed to leave under a cease-fire that began Saturday. Ukrainian officials think up to 1,000 people have taken shelter at the complex, which has been pummeled by Russian strikes in the Kremlin’s bid to secure Mariupol, an industrial center on the Sea of Azov that is seen as a strategic prize for Russian President Vladimir Putin.