Warsaw: President Joe Biden reaffirmed the United States’ dedication to European security as he met with Polish President Andrzej Duda on Tuesday, consulting with allies to prepare for an even more complex phase of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine part of a series.
“We need security in Europe,” he said at the presidential palace in Warsaw. “It’s so basic, so simple, it’s consequential.” Biden described NATO as “perhaps the most consequential alliance in history”, and he said it is “stronger than ever” despite Russian President Vladimir Putin’s hopes that it would crack down on the war in Ukraine.
Biden arrived in Warsaw on Monday after an unannounced visit to Kiev. Duda praised Biden’s visit as “fantastic”, saying it “raised the morale of Ukraine’s defenders.”
Biden will give a speech in a while
Biden is set to deliver a speech on the war later on Tuesday, and on Wednesday he plans to meet again with Duda along with other leaders of the Bucharest Nine, a grouping of the easternmost members of the NATO military alliance.
The conflict in Ukraine – the most significant war in Europe since World War II – has already claimed thousands of lives, devastated Ukraine’s infrastructure system and hammered the global economy.
In his address, Biden is expected to highlight the commitment of Poland and other allies to Ukraine over the past year when he speaks from the gardens of Warsaw’s Royal Castle. Last March, speaking from Warsaw, Biden delivered a loud and highly personal condemnation of Putin just weeks after the war began.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Tuesday’s speech would be “vintage Joe Biden” and that the Democratic president would lay out how democracy takes action that will resonate for years to come.
Putin’s address before the anniversary of the war
Biden is scheduled to speak on the day Putin delivers his long-delayed state-of-the-nation speech, in which he announced Moscow would suspend its participation in the last remaining nuclear arms control deal with the United States.
The so-called New START treaty limits the number of long-range nuclear weapons they can deploy and limits the use of missiles that can carry nuclear warheads. Sullivan said Biden’s address would not be “some sort of head-to-head” with Putin’s.
“This is not a rhetorical contest with anyone else,” he said.
While Biden is looking to use his stormy trip to Europe as a moment of affirmation for Ukraine and allies, the White House has also stressed that there is no clear end to the war in the near term and that the situation on the ground has become increasingly complex. ,
US warns China on supporting Russia in war
The administration revealed on Sunday that it has new intelligence suggesting that China, which has remained aloof from the conflict, is now considering sending lethal aid to Moscow. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said it could become a “serious problem” if Beijing follows through. Sullivan said Biden and Zelensky discussed the capabilities Ukraine needed “to be able to be successful on the battlefield”.
Zelensky has been pushing the US and European allies to provide fighter jets and a long-range missile system known as ATACMS – which Biden has so far refused to provide. Sullivan declined to comment on whether there was any movement on the matter during the leaders’ talks.
With no end in sight for the war, the anniversary is an important moment for Biden to try to strengthen European unity and to reiterate that Putin’s invasion was a frontal assault on the post-World War II international order.
The White House hopes the President’s visit to Kiev and Warsaw will help strengthen American and global resolve. In the US, a poll published last week by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows that support for providing arms and direct economic aid to Ukraine is softening. And earlier this month, 11 House Republicans introduced a “Ukraine Fatigue” resolution urging Biden to end military and financial aid to Ukraine, while pushing Ukraine and Russia to come to a peace deal.
Poland became a savior for millions
Biden dismissed the notion of waning US support during his visit to Kiev. “Despite all the disagreement in our Congress on some issues, there is significant consensus on support for Ukraine,” he said while in Kiev. “It’s not just about freedom in Ukraine. … It’s about the freedom of democracy at large.”
Prior to the visit, the White House highlighted Poland’s efforts to aid Ukraine. More than 1.5 million Ukrainian refugees have settled in Poland since the start of the war and millions more have crossed through Poland on their way to other countries. According to the White House, Poland has also provided $3.8 billion in military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine.
The Biden administration announced last summer that it was establishing a permanent US military base in Poland, creating a permanent US base on the eastern flank of NATO. Biden told Duda, “The truth of the matter is that the United States needs Poland and NATO as much as NATO needs America.”
(with inputs from AP)