President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine landed in Japan on Saturday determined to urge the wealthiest democracies in the world to stick with him as Moscow bets on the West growing fatigued by the cost and consequences of the war.
Mr. Zelensky made a dramatic entry into Hiroshima, landing in a French plane after days in which Ukrainian and Japanese officials insisted, presumably for security reasons, that he would join the leaders at the Group of 7 summit only virtually. He was dressed in his signature hoodie, standing out from the coat-and-tie diplomatic crowd of this annual summit meeting.
Hours after Mr. Zelensky arrived in Japan, the Russian government said its forces had occupied the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut. The city had become an important symbol of Ukrainian defiance and Russian determination, and its fall both bolsters and complicates Mr. Zelensky’s appeal for help.
Mr. Zelensky, American and British officials say, seems to sense that when he shows up in person,…
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