In the face of a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine, the government of President Joe Biden remains firm in its support for the Ukrainians whose administration it has extended to $ millions of dollars in military aid, while the Democrat receives bipartisan support from Congress.
This Wednesday, President Biden met virtually with several senators to discuss Russia’s military advance on the border with Ukraine, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki reported.
The group included Democrats and Republicans who made up a congressional delegation to Ukraine, where they met with Ukrainian leaders and confirmed bipartisan US support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
“President Biden and the senators exchanged views on the best ways the United States can continue to work closely with our allies and partners in support of Ukraine, including ongoing diplomatic action to try to resolve the current crisis and deterrence measures,” Psaki said.
President Biden welcomed the bipartisan support for Ukraine and outlined the imposition of sanctions in response to “increased Russian aggression” against Ukraine, the spokeswoman said.
The senators who attended the meeting with the president were Republicans Rob Portman (Ohio), Kevin Cramer (North Dakota), Roger Wicker (Mississippi) and Jim Risch (Idaho), ranking member of the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate, as well as Democrats Jeanne Shaheen (New Hampshire), Amy Klobuchar (Minnesota), Chris Murphy (Connecticut), Richard Blumenthal (Connecticut).
The Biden Administration said Wednesday that it is providing $200 million in defensive military aid to Ukraine, according to a senior Department official. of State, indicates a report by NPR.
Blinken in Kiev
Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, is in Kiev, where he had a meeting of high n level with the Ukrainian Foreign Secretary Dmitro Kuleba. Before that, he met with President Vladimir Zelensky.
“The central theme of our dialogue today was the security situation on the border with Ukraine and in the temporarily occupied areas in Donbass,” Kuleba said. at a press conference, where he recalled that this conflict between Russia and Ukraine began in 2014.
Kuleba thanked the US for its support and marked the constant communication between President Biden and Ukrainian President Zelensky . He insisted that diplomatic negotiation is the priority.
“The United States supports the efforts of Ukraine and the efforts of Germany and France to restore the work of the Normandy Format… our efforts are aimed at ensuring that that Russia advances in a diplomatic format”, he stated.
Secretary Blinken said that his trip to Kiev was to “reaffirm the unwavering support of the United States for Ukraine” and in support of the defense of its democracy.
“Moscow has sought systematically weaken Ukraine’s democratic institutions and divide Ukrainian society,” Blinken said. “Russia has also tried to destabilize the economic and financial situation in Ukraine, and we are working together to mitigate those efforts.”