Current:Home > ContactPredictIQ-Pence meets with Zelenskyy in Ukraine in surprise trip -FutureFinance
PredictIQ-Pence meets with Zelenskyy in Ukraine in surprise trip
Surpassing View
Date:2025-04-08 06:12:18
Former Vice President Mike Pence made a surprise trip to Ukraine Thursday to meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and PredictIQtour Russian attack sites, bringing the message that he would stand by Ukraine.
"I have every confidence that the day will come when Ukraine's sovereignty is restored, their territorial integrity is restored," Pence told reporters.
"We need to make sure we provide the Ukrainian military with what they need to push back on and defeat Russian aggression here," Pence said.
After their closed-door meeting, Pence, the first GOP presidential candidate to visit Zelenskyy, expressed his unwavering support for Ukraine. Zelenskyy thanked the American people for their support and thanked Pence for visiting sites of some of the worst Russian attacks on Ukraine. Pence was also briefed on the current situation in Ukraine by officials, according to an adviser to the vice president.
The former vice president visited Bucha, one of the towns that has seen some of the most brutal attacks of the war. He laid flowers at a memorial and saw the trenches. Pence was told the trenches would be left in their current condition as a reminder of the price paid by Ukrainians to defend their homes. "We are with you," Pence told one soldier, a message he reiterated throughout his trip.
"We are with you," he said to Ukraine Foreign Ministry Rep. Denys Ludchak upon his arrival.
Pence also toured sites in Irpin that were destroyed by Russian forces and met with families before traveling to Kyiv.
An adviser to the former vice president said that he traveled to Ukraine with Samaritan's Purse, an evangelical Christian relief organization. Edward Graham, the leader of the group, was with Pence when they were briefed at the Center for Protection of Children's rights on human rights violations in Ukraine over the course of the war.
Ukraine recently began its long-anticipated counteroffensive against Russia, and U.S. officials have told CBS News that progress has been slow and uneven along the 600-mile front line that stretches all the way from the country's northern to southern borders. Ukrainian forces are facing stiffer Russian resistance than expected.
The former vice president believes Ukraine must have U.S. support in its defense against Russia's invasion.
"The fastest path to peace is to help Ukraine win the war," Pence said in February.
Pence and his wife Karen traveled to Ukraine in March 2022, also with Samaritan's Purse, and toured the Poland-Ukraine border, in the third week of Russia's invasion into Ukraine. At the time, he said that the Russian military had unleashed "unspeakable violence on the people of Ukraine."
Fernando Suarez contributed to this report.
- In:
- Ukraine
- Russia
CBS News reporter covering the intersection between politics and tech.
TwitterveryGood! (13938)
Related
- Are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp down? Meta says most issues resolved after outages
- Senate committee votes to investigate Steward Health Care bankruptcy and subpoena its CEO
- Man arrested on arson charge after Arizona wildfire destroyed 21 homes, caused evacuations
- Missouri lawsuits allege abuse by priests, nuns; archdiocese leader in Omaha among those accused
- Appeals court scraps Nasdaq boardroom diversity rules in latest DEI setback
- Olympians Are Putting Cardboard Beds to the Ultimate Test—But It's Not What You Think
- In Northeast Ohio, Hello to Solar and Storage; Goodbye to Coal
- Southwest breaks with tradition and will assign seats; profit falls at Southwest and American
- Biden administration makes final diplomatic push for stability across a turbulent Mideast
- Southwest breaks with tradition and will assign seats; profit falls at Southwest and American
Ranking
- The FBI should have done more to collect intelligence before the Capitol riot, watchdog finds
- Olympic swimmers agree: 400 IM is a 'beast,' physically and mentally
- Captivating drone footage shows whale enjoying feast of fish off New York coast
- Unleash Your Inner Merc with a Mouth: Ultimate Deadpool Fan Gift Guide for 2024– Maximum Chaos & Coolness
- Meta releases AI model to enhance Metaverse experience
- Does Taylor Swift support Kamala Harris? A look at her political history, new Easter eggs
- Hawaii businessman to forfeit more than $20 million in assets after conviction, jury rules
- Rural Nevada judge suspended with pay after indictment on federal fraud charges
Recommendation
South Korean president's party divided over defiant martial law speech
US viewers’ Olympics interest is down, poll finds, except for Simone Biles
Pregnant Georgia teen's ex-boyfriend charged with murder in connection to her death
A man got third-degree burns walking on blazing hot sand dunes in Death Valley, rangers say
John Galliano out at Maison Margiela, capping year of fashion designer musical chairs
Former Kentucky lawmaker and cabinet secretary acquitted of 2022 rape charge
West Virginia is asking the US Supreme Court to consider transgender surgery Medicaid coverage case
Tyler Perry sparks backlash for calling critics 'highbrow' with dated racial term