Reuters. Fresh from an unannounced visit to Ukraine, President Joe Biden rallied NATO allies in Poland on Tuesday, (February 21) proclaiming "unwavering" support for Kyiv and a commitment to bolstering the alliance's eastern flank.
On a trip clearly timed to overshadow a major speech by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Biden met Polish President Andrzej Duda, one of the most vocal proponents of stronger Western support for Ukraine.
The U.S. president was due to give a keynote speech of his own later on Tuesday, in which he would rally support for Ukraine as the war enters its second year with no end in sight.
He opened his trip on Monday with an unannounced trip to Ukraine, billed as the first time a U.S. president has made such a journey to a country with active military operations without U.S. troops on the ground controlling the area.
The visit was welcomed by ordinary Poles and by the 2.5 million Ukrainians, mostly women and children refugees from the conflict, now living in the country. Many called for bolder Western support for Kyiv, including the supply of fighter jets, which Biden has so far held back from offering.
Before returning to Washington on Wednesday (February 22), Biden will meet leaders of the Bucharest Nine, the countries on NATO's eastern flank, to reaffirm support for their security.
