The symbolism could not have been more powerful.
Almost a year after Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine and tried to overthrow its government, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy embraced US President Joe Biden near the Wall of Remembrance in Kyiv, which commemorates the heroism of thousands of soldiers who have died since Russia illegally annexed Crimea in 2014.
The message was clear. President Zelenskyy was still leading his country in the fight against Russia, and President Biden would provide "unwavering support" to ensure the sacrifices of the Ukrainian people in defending their "independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity" would not be in vain.
"One year later, Kyiv stands. And Ukraine stands. Democracy stands," Mr Biden said, paying tribute to the courage and resilience of a country that he visited six times as vice-president, and now once as president.
Mr Zelenskyy described the visit as a "huge moment for Ukraine".
In recent months various leaders from western nations have repeated the mantra that they would support Ukraine "for as long as it takes". To hear Mr Biden repeat those same words in their capital, at a time when air raid sirens had been going off, will mean a lot to Mr Zelenskyy and his people.
"I thought it was critical that there not be any doubt, none whatsoever, about US support for Ukraine in the war," Mr Biden said.
Ukraine is going to need all the support it can get to push the world's second-most powerful army out of its country.
The artillery ammunition can't come fast enough.
Last week NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg warned that Ukraine was burning through ammunition faster than its allies could supply it.
On the weekend, the EU's top diplomat Josep Borrell said: "Zelenskyy and the Ukrainians get a lot of applause, but not enough ammunition. It's a paradox. They need less applause and more weapons."
Mr Zelenskyy says he raised the issue of more long-range weapons with Mr Biden during his visit to Kyiv.
The HIMARS rocket launchers provided by the US have been critical in helping Ukraine regain territory from Russian forces, but Ukraine wants more.
Specifically, they want access to the Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) which has a greater range than HIMARS and could help cut supply lines from Crimea. So far, the US has resisted sending these weapons to Ukraine.
Optimism remains inside Ukraine that its forces can defeat Russia. That thought would have seemed unthinkable to many when the invasion began a year ago.
But by donating billions of dollars' worth of military aid, and pushing other western nations to deliver more weapons, ammunition and tanks, Mr Biden has played a key role in keeping Ukraine in the fight against a much-vaunted military force which began the war with a seemingly endless supply of troops and superior range of weaponry.
That's why Mr Biden's visit meant so much to so many Ukrainians.
Mr Biden's visit to Kyiv also contained a strong domestic message for wavering Republicans who might want the US to dial back support for its ally.
US Congressman Matt Gaetz and ten other lawmakers have called on the Biden administration to kill off any additional military and financial aid to Ukraine in what they are calling the "Ukraine Fatigue Resolution".
The US has committed more than $US100 billion ($145 billion) in financial and military assistance to Ukraine in the past 12 months, and support among Republican voters for further military aid has been dropping.
Mr Biden will hope his visit to Kyiv underlies the importance of continuing to support Ukraine for the long haul.
The presidential trip was shrouded in secrecy. Mr Biden crossed the border from Poland into Ukraine by train, travelling for nearly 10 hours with his entourage, before taking a motorcade through the streets of Kyiv.
His appearance in a city which has faced multiple drone and missile attacks in recent months is in stark contrast to Putin's continuing aversion to taking risks.
The Russian leader famously uses a three-pillared oval-shaped white table to keep a significant social distance of around six metres between himself and other world leaders, reportedly to minimise exposure to coronavirus.
Putin has rarely been seen in public, let alone a war zone, in recent years. Earlier this month when he went to Volgograd to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Battle of Stalingrad, the city was locked down and local residents were nowhere to be seen.
Nataliya Vasilyeva, Moscow correspondent for the Telegraph told the podcast Ukraine: The Latest, that as Putin laid a wreath in Volgograd, he was surrounded by soldiers who had been stripped of their weapons, suggesting "a tangible fear of uprising and things going terribly wrong".
Tomorrow Putin will venture into the relatively safe surrounds of the Russian Federal Assembly where he will give an address to parliamentarians in the lead-up to the first anniversary of his invasion of Ukraine.
