First lady Jill Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau each made surprise visits to Ukraine on Sunday, expressing solidarity with the Ukrainian defenders battling against a Russian military onslaught in the country’s eastern region.
Mrs. Biden crossed into western Ukraine from Slovakia. She met with Olena Zelenska, wife of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
U.S. officials said the two women have been in touch over the last several weeks, as the Russian assault on Ukraine’s disputed Donbas region intensified.
“The hearts of the American people are with the mothers of Ukraine,” Mrs. Biden said.
Mr. Trudeau visited the Ukrainian city of Irpin, near the capital of Kyiv. Irpin sustained severe damage in the early weeks of the war as Russian troops tried to take the capital.
Russia ultimately abandoned that campaign and has instead mounted a major assault on the Donbas region, including the key port city of Mariupol, which has faced non-stop shelling for weeks.
Mr. Trudeau‘s visit was meant to “reaffirm Canada’s unwavering support for the Ukrainian people,” the prime minister’s office said.
