U.S. Secretary of State Blinken arrived in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, on the morning of May 14, local time. The visit was unannounced.
Blinken took an overnight train from eastern Poland to Kiev. This is Blinken’s fourth visit to Kiev since Russia launched a special military operation in February 2022.
A senior U.S. official said Blinken planned to speak in Kiev on Tuesday. He will meet with Volodymyr Zelensky and other senior Ukrainian officials.
The official said the secretary of state’s visit is aimed at discussing how the United States will implement supplementary assistance to strengthen Ukraine’s defenses and gradually regain the initiative.
U.S. President Biden signed the Aid to Ukraine and Israel Act on April 24, which included provisions for providing important military assistance to Ukraine, ending months of negotiations and debates on the aid plan to Ukraine.
According to the bill, the United States will provide nearly $61 billion in aid to Ukraine, including $23.2 billion to replenish weapons transferred from Department of Defense warehouses to Ukraine, $13.8 billion to purchase military supplies for Ukraine on the open market, and $11.3 billion. Used to safeguard “current U.S. military operations in the region.”
Russia has previously sent notes to NATO countries on the issue of supplying weapons to Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that any supplies to Ukraine for weapons will be a legitimate target. The Russian Foreign Ministry pointed out that NATO countries are “playing with fire” by providing weapons to Ukraine. Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said that the transfer of weapons from Western countries to Ukraine will not help the success of Russia-Ukraine negotiations and will have a negative impact. Lavrov pointed out that the United States and NATO are directly involved in the Ukrainian conflict, including not only providing weapons but also training personnel on the territory of Britain, Germany, Italy and other countries.
