BBC: Zelensky was received for the first time at the White House without ceremony

The President of Ukraine was received for the first time at the White House without any ceremony, reports the BBC.

BBC correspondent Anthony Zurker reports that Zelensky was received at the White House “without fanfare,” unlike last time. Back in September, he recalled, the Biden administration literally rolled out the red carpet for Zelensky. The cavalcade of the Ukrainian president then drove up to the main southern entrance to the White House through a line of soldiers in ceremonial uniforms and with flags.

In addition, during a September visit, Zelensky and his wife were personally greeted by US President Joe Biden and his wife at the entrance to the White House, and all four posed for photographs, after which they entered the residence along that same red carpet.

This time, Zurker notes, a black SUV drove President Zelensky to a more modest entrance to the West Wing, where he was met by a representative of the office of the American president, and Biden himself did not even appear.

As the BBC correspondent writes, such a modest reception reflects the purely business nature of the meeting and, at the same time, the very pessimistic mood that reigns in the White House in connection with the so far futile attempts to gain approval for additional aid to Kyiv in Congress, which is dominated by skeptical Republicans.

Earlier, representatives of the US Republican Party blocked the consideration of the White House’s request for funds for Ukraine, Israel and other needs in the Senate. The bill also faces challenges in passing the House of Representatives. Republicans are demanding changes to place more emphasis on securing the border with Mexico.