The Ukrainian president has asked the US Congress in Washington to “remember” Pearl Harbor and the 9/11 attacks, when “innocent people” were attacked from the air, as he called for more support.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy was greeted with a standing ovation ahead of his powerful remarks, which he made through a video link from Ukraine.
Echoing the words of Martin Luther King, Mr Zelenskyy told US politicians: “I have a dream… I have a need… I need to protect our sky – I need your decision, your help.
“Russia has turned the Ukrainian sky into a source of death.”
He added Russia had “attacked not just us, not just our land, not just our cities, it went on a brutal offensive against our values”.
Referring to the 9/11 attacks and Pearl Harbor, he told Congress “you could not stop it – our country experienced the same every day”.
During a meeting of the House of Representatives and Senate, Mr Zelenskyy urged Congress to provide more weapons to help his country fight off Russian airstrikes.
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The US and the international community has warned that imposing a no-fly zone could escalate the conflict with nuclear-armed Russia.
It is rare for foreign leaders to address the the US Congress during a time of conflict.
In 1941, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill spoke to Congress weeks after Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbour drew the US into World War Two.
