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Zelenskiyy visits London and echoes Churchill

By Therese Raphael

08 Feb 2023 · 3 min read

Editor's Note

The Ukrainian president's trip to Britain should be remembered for his message, writes Bloomberg's Theresa Raphael. Essentially, he made lawmakers feel that his mission was also part of their DNA.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky came to Britain on Wednesday hat in hand, literally. The war-torn country's leader paused his speech in the historic 900-year-old Westminster Hall to present Speaker of the House Lindsay Hoyle the helmet of one of Ukraine's ace fighter-pilots with the inscription, "we have freedom. Now give us the wings to protect it."

Speaking in English and dressed simply in those familiar khaki fatigues, Zelenskiy appealed for modern jet fighters, but he gave the MPs something beyond planes to think about.

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