U.S. President Joe Biden has made a surprise visit to Kyiv just days ahead of the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of the country.
Photos on social media showed Biden meeting his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in the center of the Ukrainian capital on February 20 after air-raid sirens were heard. No missiles or air strikes were reported after the alert.
The visit is an “extremely important sign of support for all Ukrainians,” Zelenskiy said of the visit.
“As the world prepares to mark the one-year anniversary of Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, I am in Kyiv today to meet with President Zelenskyy and reaffirm our unwavering and unflagging commitment to Ukraine’s democracy, sovereignty, and territorial integrity,” Biden said in a statement marking the unannounced stop on his way to Poland.
“When Putin launched his invasion nearly one year ago, he thought Ukraine was weak and the West was divided. He thought he could outlast us. But he was dead wrong,” Biden said.
Biden added that he would also be announcing another delivery of “critical equipment” to Ukraine, including artillery ammunition, anti-armor systems, and air surveillance radars to help protect Ukrainians from aerial bombardments.
Later this week, he said Washington would announce additional sanctions against elites and companies “that are trying to evade or backfill Russia’s war machine.”
The visit comes as Russian forces continue to pound military positions and civilian settlements in eastern and southern Ukraine, despite what Zelenskiy called “extraordinarily significant” Russian losses in key disputed areas of the Donetsk region.
Biden is scheduled to arrive in Poland later on February 20, where he is expected to meet with U.S. allies in Europe and assure them of the U.S. commitment to European security and to continued assistance to Ukraine.
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