UKRAINE USA RUSSIA CONFLICT WAR DIPLOMACY
U.S. President Joe Biden walks alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as he arrives on a visit to Kiev February 20, 2023. Credit – Dimitar DILKOFF – AFP
US President Joe Biden made a surprise stop in Kiev on Monday before he was due to travel to Poland four days before the first anniversary of Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine.
Against the will of the secret service and the Pentagon, Biden came to the besieged capital after a covert operation to cover up his whereabouts. Biden reportedly had dinner with his wife in Washington, DC on Saturday and then quietly departed.
Biden later took a one-hour train ride from the Polish border to reach the Ukrainian capital. Many gathered in Heaven’s Hundred Square, barricaded and surrounded by military and police officials, to spot Biden. The main street in Kiev was also closed to make way for congestion in the city.
Air raid sirens rang out over the capital as Biden and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy exited St. Michael’s Cathedral in central Kiev.
Continue reading: In Zelensky’s world
The visit came as Ukraine marked the Day of Heroes of the Heavenly Hundreds, which commemorates the 107 deaths of those fighting in 2014 in anti-government protests that Ukrainians call the Dignity Revolution. These unrest prompted Russian President Vladimir Putin – concerned about Ukraine moving west – to annex Crimea and support separatist forces in eastern Ukraine.
The White House public schedule for Biden showed him in Washington through Monday night, from whence he would leave for Poland. While there were rumors that Biden could meet Zelenskyy near Poland’s border with Ukraine or in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, no such agreement has been confirmed.
The extensive effort can only be read as a grand demonstration of US support for Ukraine. In a statement released Monday, Biden said his visit was aimed at “reaffirming our unwavering and unwavering commitment to the democracy, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.”
He added: “When Putin launched his invasion almost a year ago, he thought Ukraine was weak and the West divided. He thought he could outlive us. But he was absolutely wrong.”
The statement announced that the US will continue to provide military assistance, including artillery shells, anti-tank systems and air surveillance radars, to better defend Ukraine’s skies. It also said more sanctions would be imposed on companies and individuals who step up Russia’s war effort.
Zelenskyj welcomed the visit with an Instagram post shaking hands with Biden. “Joseph Biden, welcome to Kiev! Your visit is an extremely important show of support for all Ukrainians,” the caption reads.
Biden is scheduled to meet with Poland’s President Andrzej Duda on Tuesday morning and deliver a speech from Warsaw Castle on the same day. The speech is intended to pledge further support to Ukraine and strengthen the NATO alliance.
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