Russia-Ukraine war: Zelenskyy addresses UK lawmakers, rare trip outside Ukraine

Europe and the United States will support Ukraine in its war against Russia for as long as necessary, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Wednesday, adding Ukraine belongs to the European family. Speaking in Paris with Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy and French President Emmanuel Macron, Scholz said leaders at an EU summit on Thursday would send a strong signal of solidarity with Kyiv. "I am taking a clear message to Brussels: Ukraine belongs to the European family," said Scholz.

French President Emmanuel Macron has "changed" since the statements he made on Russia irritated Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an interview to a French newspaper ahead of a visit to Paris. "I think he has changed, and changed for real this time," Zelenskyy told Le Figaro newspaper, when asked if Macron had changed since he irritated him with his comments on the need to avoid "humiliating" Russia.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy began a tour of Europe on Wednesday in search of better aerial firepower to turn the war against Russia, winning a British pledge to train Ukrainian pilots on advanced NATO fighter jets.

UK lawmakers on Wednesday applauded Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as he addressed the British parliament on a rare overseas visit.

Leonid Pasechnik told Russian state TV that the situation is “very difficult” in areas around a key Russian supply route. “Unfortunately, the enemy is accumulating sufficient reserves there, forces to counterattack, to return the lost territories,” he said.

That would give Russian President Vladimir Putin a major battlefield success after months of setbacks and help him rally public opinion behind the war.

It would also open a door for Moscow’s forces to drive toward key Ukrainian strongholds in Donetsk.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will ask a summit of European Union leaders on Thursday for more arms to fight Russia and powering ahead with Kyiv's bid to join the EU, a senior Ukrainian official said on Wednesday

In his first visit to the UK since Russia invaded Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak here on Wednesday, addressed Parliament and will also meet King Charles. The visit comes as Sunak extended the UK's ongoing support to train Ukrainian fighter jet pilots and marines to help upskill their defensive capabilities. Buckingham Palace said the surprise visit, not announced in advance due to security reasons, will also include a meeting with King Charles III.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday predicted that Russia would lose the war against his country, and thanked the British people for their support from "Day One" since Moscow's military offensive. "I stand before you on behalf of our brave soldiers who are right now under artillery fire," Zelenskyy said in a rousing address to Parliament, during which he complimented the “strong British character”.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has begun his historic address to the U.K. Parliament during a rare trip outside his country to seek more support

He will later also have an audience with King Charles III.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Wednesday told parliament the UK would continue "to support Ukraine to ensure decisive military victory on the battlefield, this year".

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Wednesday his government wanted to see a decisive military victory on the battlefield this year in Ukraine.

Britain set out a new round of sanctions on "Russian military and Kremlin elites" on Wednesday, including six entities providing military equipment such as drones for Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Wednesday criticized the public competition among some countries over who can deliver more and better weapons to Ukraine, saying it harmed unity among allies.

Russia has asked Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters to speak to the UN Security Council on Wednesday at a meeting that Moscow requested to discuss the delivery of weapons to Ukraine. "Russian diplomacy used to be serious. What next? Mr. Bean?" said a UN Security Council diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity. Waters was criticized by supporters of Ukraine when he published an open letter on his website in September to Ukrainian first lady Olena Zelenska. He argued against the Western supply of weapons to Kyiv.

The invasion of Ukraine by Russia has been a test for the ages, and a test for the world, US President Joe Biden said as he slammed his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin for his military aggression. "I spoke from this chamber one year ago, just days after Vladimir Putin unleashed his brutal war against Ukraine. A murderous assault, evoking images of the death and destruction Europe suffered in World War II," Biden said in his address to a joint session of the US Congress on Tuesday night. "Putin's invasion has been a test for the ages. A test for America. A test for the world. Would we stand for the most basic of principles? Would we stand for sovereignty? Would we stand for the right of people to live free from tyranny? Would we stand for the defence of democracy?” Biden posed a series of questions in his second State of the Union address.