Joe Biden Visits Ukraine Unannounced, Pledges $500M Assistance

In a bold and potentially risky move, President Joe Biden visits Ukraine on Monday to meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as Russia's invasion of Ukraine enters its second year.

Biden offered $500 million in new aid to Ukraine and promised more sanctions against Russia. The specifics of which will be unveiled in the coming days, according to NPR.

"One year later, Kyiv stands. And Ukraine stands. Democracy stands," Biden said.

For "deconfliction purposes," the White House informed the Russians of Biden's trip "some hours" before he left, according to national security advisor Jake Sullivan, who accompanied the president to Kyiv.

However, Sullivan refused to discuss the nature of the U.S. message or the Russian response during a call with reporters.

While Biden is in Ukraine, Russian soldiers are ramping up their efforts to seize control of the Donbas area, which they illegitimately invaded last September.

Biden returned to Poland late Monday night and will travel to Warsaw to meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda and deliver a speech on Tuesday.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy Says Joe Biden's Visit Was an Important Day to His Country

The day that U.S. President Joe Biden visits Ukraine was important, said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during his Monday address.

"Today was a symbolic day. The 362nd day of a full-scale war, and we, in our free capital of our free country, are hosting a visit from our powerful ally, the President of the United States of America," said Zelenskyy. He stated that talking to Biden about the future of Ukraine, their relations, Europe, and global democracy demonstrates how strong Ukraine is and how vital Ukraine is to the rest of the world.

The procedures required to liberate their still-occupied lands and to assure dependable security for their nation and all the peoples of Europe are recognized, Zelenskyy added.

"All we need is determination," he said, as quoted by CNN.

Zelensky thanked the American people, lawmakers from both parties, and Biden's staff for their efforts to fortify the bond between Ukraine and the United States.

"Now we are convinced that there is nothing that can undermine our democracy," Zelenskyy stated, adding that there is no part of Ukrainian existence that is or can ever be considered vulnerable.

"Our strength is a powerful contribution to the strength of all freedom-loving nations in the world," he concluded.

The World Reacts to Joe Biden's Ukraine Trip

Japan's latest financial help to Ukraine is $5.5 billion, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced on Monday, after news of President Joe Biden's visit, said Time.

Despite the end of hostilities, Kishida said there is still a need to assist individuals whose livelihoods have been damaged by the war and to rehabilitate wrecked infrastructure.

A virtual gathering of the G7 leaders and Zelenky will take place on Friday, the official anniversary of the invasion.

During a press conference on Monday, a representative of the German government also applauded Biden's visit. Steffen Hebestreit called the move a "good signal," but he did not want to say anything about it.

Meanwhile, Turkey will no longer export anything that could be used to aid Russia's military efforts. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said the United States government had sent a warning to Ankara on the import and export of microchips, chemicals, and other things.

"It is not true that we have exported to Russia products that can be used in the defense industry," Çavuşoğlu said. "We asked the United States to notify [us] if there are any violations on this issue," he added.

The meeting between Çavuşoğlu and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken prompted the remarks that he swore to continue complying with U.S. and European sanctions.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Bert Hoover

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