After embrace at NATO summit, Zelensky takes his case for U.S. military aid to governors

SALT LAKE CITY —  Away from Washington, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky sought to broaden support for U.S. military aid by telling state governors that the world’s leaders should see for themselves the carnage wrought since Russia invaded his country more than two years ago.

Zelensky’s plea at the National Governors Assn. summer meeting in Salt Lake City on Friday came days after NATO leaders met in the U.S. capital and pledged more help for Ukraine.

“The only thing we ask for is sufficient support — air defense systems for our cities, weapons for our men and women on the front line, support in protecting normal life and rebuilding,” Zelensky said. “This is all we need to withstand and drive Russia from our land and to send a strong signal to all other potential aggressors which are watching.”

NATO members agreed to a new program to provide reliable military aid to Ukraine and prepare for its eventual membership in the alliance. They declared Ukraine was on an “ irreversible ” path to join NATO and, for the first time, that China was a “ decisive enabler ” of Russia in the war.

Yet many Republicans including former President Trump have been skeptical and in some cases opposed to continuing to help Ukraine fight off Russia’s 2022 invasion. President Biden highlighted his differences with Trump over Ukraine after the NATO summit.

While governors don’t vote on U.S. military aid to Ukraine, Zelensky’s appearance showed his willingness to connect with other leaders in the U.S. to plead his country’s case.

He was cheered when Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican and the outgoing National Governors Assn. chairman, introduced him.

“Sometimes it’s hard to tell who the good guys and the bad guys are,” Cox said. “This is not one of those times.”

Cox and Zelensky signed a trade agreement between Utah and the Kyiv region. Several governors of both parties pledged in a closed-door meeting with the Ukrainian leader to urge their states’ wealthiest people to give humanitarian aid, said Hawaii Gov. Josh Green, a Democrat.

Zelensky’s appeal to governors from both parties could pay dividends if Trump is reelected, Green told the Associated Press, saying “perhaps he’ll listen to some of the Republican governors that were in the room and us, perhaps, as Democratic governors because it’s a humanitarian crisis.”

Republican Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said Zelensky made “a very, very good case” that has motivated him to urge others in his party to continue sending aid.

“We need to punch a bully in the nose when he’s coming in and trying to take over a sovereign country like Ukraine,” Stitt told reporters. “It seems like a pretty good use of funds. These aren’t American forces on the ground, these are just simply dollars, weapons, technology. It makes a lot of sense.”

Associated Press writer Schoenbaum reported from Salt Lake city, Gruver from Cheyenne, Wyo.