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A hero\u2019s welcome awaited President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine on his first trip to the United States after Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion, which came on the heels of two back-to-back military advances that showcased Ukrainian momentum to the West. Mr. Zelensky spoke to a joint session of Congress<\/a> last December, highlighting the successes and appealing for continued aid.<\/p>\n Mr. Zelensky\u2019s second visit, beginning on Tuesday, is a more delicate political mission, coming in the face of skepticism over assistance to Ukraine from some Republican lawmakers and amid a slow-moving and so far inconclusive counteroffensive on which many hopes in the war had been pinned.<\/p>\n Mr. Zelensky will attend the U.N. General Assembly meeting in New York, where he is expected to continue an effort to win support among developing nations that have wavered or leaned toward Russia. Then he will travel to Washington to meet with congressional leaders and visit the White House.<\/p>\n The Ukrainian president is approaching his appearances with a more balanced message. He remains a tireless advocate for military assistance for the Ukrainian Army, but has infused his pleas with deep expressions of gratitude for what the West has already provided.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n It\u2019s a shift in tone and approach for Mr. Zelensky after criticism that he was scolding his allies and appearing ungrateful<\/a> as he pressed them for weapons.<\/p>\n At a NATO summit in July, Ben Wallace, then Britain\u2019s defense minister, said, \u201cLike it or not, people want to see a bit more gratitude.\u201d He said he was offering advice for Ukraine to win over those who have been skeptical of aid.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n At the same summit, in Vilnius, Lithuania, Jake Sullivan, the Biden administration\u2019s national security adviser, said that \u201cthe American people do deserve a degree of gratitude\u201d for ammunition, air-defense systems, armored vehicles and mine-clearing equipment.<\/p>\n Mr. Zelensky appeared to get the message.<\/p>\n \u201cThank you so much,\u201d he said in a brief comment during Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken\u2019s visit to Kyiv this month<\/a>, in which Mr. Zelensky said thank you eight times.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cWe are really thankful. We are very thankful,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Last December, Mr. Zelensky arrived in Washington just weeks after Ukraine\u2019s military had defeated Russian forces in the only provincial capital they had seized in the full-scale invasion, Kherson, in the country\u2019s south. Earlier in the fall, Ukraine had sprung a successful surprise attack on Russian forces in the Kharkiv region in the northeast, recapturing towns and villages across a wide swath of territory.<\/p>\n The gains meant that Ukraine had reclaimed about half the territory Russia seized in the invasion that began in February 2022.<\/p>\n Ukrainian forces at the time were also fiercely holding off the Russians in Bakhmut. (The Russians eventually captured the city in May.) In his appearance before Congress, which drew a standing ovation, Mr. Zelensky presented the Democratic congresswoman Nancy Pelosi and Vice President Kamala Harris with a Ukrainian flag signed by soldiers fighting in Bakhmut<\/a>.<\/p>\n At the time, preparations were already underway for the military operation that began in southern Ukraine this June, after a monthslong wait for American and European weaponry, including tanks and armored vehicles. Mr. Zelensky has complained that the delay gave Russia time to dig in and lay vast minefields, thwarting any fast advance.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Other factors added to the delay, including late spring rains, but the Ukrainian government\u2019s evolving argument was that the West\u2019s hesitation over sending more powerful and sophisticated weapons was costly in terms of the counteroffensive\u2019s effectiveness.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Ukraine\u2019s army is now locked in a plodding but vicious and bloody fight along two main lines of attack through farm fields and tiny villages.<\/p>\n Military analysts have not written off the operation, but even Mr. Zelensky has said it is moving slower than hoped. This month, Ukraine pierced a main line of Russian defenses near the village of Robotyne and is fighting to widen the breach sufficiently to send through armored vehicles.<\/p>\n At home, Mr. Zelensky remains politically popular though he has hit some speed bumps, including corruption in military recruitment offices and procurement that led to the firing of his defense minister.<\/a> On Monday, Ukraine dismissed all six of its deputy defense ministers<\/a>, a significant shake-up in its wartime operations.<\/p>\n After nearly 19 months of war, the vast majority of Ukrainians remain enraged at Russia for the invasion and deeply opposed to any settlement that would leave President Vladimir V. Putin with any gains from the assault.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n In addition to lobbying the United States and Europe for military aid, Ukraine has been seeking diplomatic backing from developing countries in Africa and South America, arguing that disruptions in grain shipments are raising food prices. He also wants to shore up support from military allies, of which the United States is most pivotal.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n