Zelenskyy visits Polish President Duda in Warsaw

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will visit Warsaw on Wednesday, where he will meet his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda in his second trip to Poland since the beginning of Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Their talks will focus on security issues, economic cooperation and historical matters, Duda’s office said in a statement.

“We want to conduct these talks in the spirit of thinking about the future,” presidential foreign policy adviser Marcin Przydacz said.

This will be Zelenskyy’s second visit to Poland since the beginning of the war — but his first “official” one, according to the Polish presidential office.

The Ukrainian president has only been outside of the country twice since February 2022. He first traveled to the U.S. last December, before heading to London, Paris and Brussels in a tour of allied European capitals in February. He then briefly stopped in Rzeszów, Poland, on his way back from Brussels, where he met with Duda.

Duda has visited Ukraine four times since the beginning of the war, according to the Polish presidential office.

Poland has been one of Ukraine’s most prominent supporters, pledging important military aid to Kyiv and sending some of its Soviet-era MiG-29 fighter jets, the first of which arrived Tuesday in Ukraine.

Przydacz, the presidential adviser, told radio broadcaster RFM FM on Tuesday that Zelenskyy’s visit “should be taken as a sign of trust and of thanking Poland and Poles” for their support.

At Zelenskyy’s request, the two presidents will host a joint speech from the Royal Castle in Warsaw, at 6 p.m CET.