The first at this level since the outbreak of the war .. What is the importance of Blinken and Austin's visit to Kiev?

WASHINGTON -

As Ukraine's president was meeting in Kiev with the US secretaries of state and defense, President Joe Biden tweeted that "two months after Putin launched an unprovoked attack on Ukraine, Kiev is still holding on, President Zelensky and his democratically elected government are still in power." We will continue to support the Ukrainians in their struggle to defend their homeland."

This is the first time that high-ranking US officials have traveled to Ukraine and met with the Ukrainian president since the start of the Russian invasion two months ago.

Zelensky's last personal meeting with a senior US official was on February 19, before the Russian invasion, with Vice President Kamala Harris at the Munich Security Forum.

The Biden administration received many criticisms for the delay in the visit of senior US officials to Kiev, similar to what was done by a number of senior officials in the European continent, such as the British Prime Minister, the Polish President and others. London also confirmed after that the re-work of its embassy in Kiev.

At the same time, some Republicans in Congress are pressing President Biden to pay a visit to Ukraine to show the extent of American support in its war with Russia, and the White House said earlier that there are no plans to visit Biden.

Last February, Biden visited US forces stationed in Poland, about an hour's drive from the Ukrainian border, on a four-day trip to Europe, but he did not cross the border into Ukraine.

President Biden had earlier alluded to his security guard's concerns about his personal safety as a justification for not entering Ukraine.

Symbolic objectives of the visit

The Kyiv meeting came just days after Biden pledged additional weapons and economic aid worth $1.3 billion, in addition to a $800 million package that included heavy artillery for the first time, as well as additional helicopters, and recent aid shipments will include dozens of howitzers and attack drones. .

Thus, the United States has provided a total of $3.4 billion in military aid to Ukraine since the Russian invasion.

“I hope Ministers Austin and Blinken told President Zelensky the following: The United States is committed to the victory of Ukraine, and we will reopen the embassy in Kyiv,” General Ben Hedges, former commander-in-chief of the US Army in Europe and military expert at the Center for European Policy Analysis, tweeted of the Kiev meeting. Immediately, we will do whatever it takes to ensure Ukraine wins, commit to long-term security cooperation, and commit to leading the Marshall Plan for rebuilding Ukraine."

At the same time, senior US officials reiterated that providing arms to Ukraine is a strong signal to Russia that Washington will not leave Ukraine alone in this war.

The visit coincided with the war entering a new phase with Russia moving its forces to the east and south after failing to control Kyiv or overthrow Zelensky's government in the first weeks of the conflict.

Ukraine is pressing the United States and its allies to send more advanced weapons to repel the Russian attack on the eastern Donbass region, as Russian forces seek full control of the besieged port of Mariupol.

Before the visit, Zelensky praised the accelerating arms shipments arriving in his country from the United States, and said they could help Ukraine escalate its counterattack, but added that American visitors "should not come here with empty hands."

Ukraine is pressing the West for more powerful weapons to fight Russia's campaign to seize swathes of the country's southern and eastern regions.

Zelensky's hopes and Biden's realism

American observers were surprised that the news of the visit of the two American ministers came out through President Zelensky and not through official American statements, as is the case with the visits of senior officials.

At a press conference the day before yesterday, Zelensky surprised everyone by saying, "I don't think this is a big secret, officials from the United States will come to us tomorrow. We will meet with Secretary of State Mr. Blinken and Secretary of Defense Austin."

Zelensky's position prompted David Aaron Miller, a former State Department official, to say that Zelensky's actions were a departure from diplomatic considerations.

"It's strange that Zelensky announced Blinken and Austin's visit to Kyiv with a breakdown of the agenda for the talks. Why all the hype and drama? Why is Ukraine taking the lead during Zelensky's press conference? Why let Ukraine take the lead? Someone seems so nervous and confused," he tweeted. what is happening around it.

Zelensky did not stop pressuring Washington to play a greater role in helping his country defeat the Russian side, but Kyiv's efforts to push Washington to impose a no-fly zone over its territory or to provide it with advanced MiG aircraft owned by Poland and the Czech Republic, two enemies of NATO, failed. Zelensky also requested that Washington provide him with security guarantees.

For his part, Biden reiterates his pledges not to enter into direct conflict with Russia, but he promised that the United States will provide what it can of weapons to the Ukrainian side, and will defend all NATO territories, and he also ordered sending more American forces to the eastern side of the alliance to allay the fears of allies. And I reassured them at a time when unprecedented sanctions are being imposed on the Russian side.