Joe Biden

The US President has made a surprise trip to Ukraine, days before the one-year anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion.

Visit to Ukraine is a defining moment for the US president but foreign policy does not necessarily win elections.

[too old, too doddery ](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/feb/19/us-congress-presidency-gerontocracy)and gaffe prone to lead the country with vigour, especially into a second term. Kennedy was killed before he could stand for a second term, and Reagan had already been re-elected and was in his penultimate year in office. “I and many Americans are thinking to ourselves: OK, he’s very concerned about those borders halfway around the world. The visit cemented Biden’s claim of leadership of the free world, but among Washington’s allies that has not really been challenged since the full invasion of In going to Kyiv, Biden was entering a war zone and putting his safety in the hands of the Ukrainian armed forces, and also those of the Russians. Visits to the troops in Afghanistan and Iraq were different, as the US military ran security in those countries.

Scenes of the American president, walking side-by-side with Volodymyr Zelensky, were a timely reminder of what is at stake for Ukraine, for the US, ...

Zelensky, in response, said he’d come to the conclusion that Russian attitudes were not going to be changed by talking. Ukrainian officials had been warning that Russia was planning a large-scale missile bombardment to be timed to the one-year anniversary of the war. “I am convinced that, in the end, this will not conclude militarily.” Currently, it lies only at the fringes, but another six months of heavy casualties and constant demands for more and more aid will likely test the patience of some nations, who argue a peace deal must be brokered. Biden, too, has pressures at home when it comes to keeping up military aid, while Europe, which has unified in a way Russian President Vladimir Putin thought was not possible, has shown signs of weariness towards the war. The visit is a symbol of American resolve.

The US president has met with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on his first visit to the country since the start of the conflict.

"We'll do everything we can," Mr Borrell said. "(Let's) accelerate our military support to Ukraine because Ukraine is in a critical situation from the point of view with ammunition available," Mr Borrell said. "This is the most urgent issue, if we fail on that then really the result of the war is in danger." On Sunday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said China was now "considering providing lethal support" to Moscow ranging "from ammunition to the weapons themselves". US President Joe Biden on Monday made a surprise trip to Kyiv, promising increased arms deliveries for Ukraine and unflagging support ahead of the first anniversary of Russia's latest invasion of the country. - It's a major show of support to the country ahead of the one-year anniversary of Russia's latest invasion.

Our North America editor on how Joe Biden's audacious trip to Kyiv was kept a secret.

Monday's message is designed to vividly counter the minority of Republican voices who question for how long the US can continue supporting Ukraine. President Biden then spent 10 hours on a train to get to Kyiv. He said the US "did so for deconfliction purposes… Only two journalists were allowed to travel with the president. They were sworn to secrecy and had their mobile phones taken away from them. In fact, Air Force One took off at 04:15 EST on Sunday morning.

Mr Biden is scheduled to meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda and deliver an address from the gardens of Warsaw's Royal Castle.

With no end in sight for the war, the anniversary is a critical moment for Mr Biden to try to bolster European unity and reiterate that Mr Putin’s invasion was a frontal attack on the post-Second World War international order. Mr Zelensky has been pushing the US and European allies to provide fighter jets and long-range missile systems known as ATACMS — which Mr Biden has declined to provide so far. Mr Biden is scheduled to meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda and deliver an address from the gardens of Warsaw’s Royal Castle on Tuesday, where he is expected to highlight the commitment of the central European country and other allies to Ukraine over the past year.

Washington Correspondent Annelise Nielsen says the “level of detail” which had to go into Joe Biden visiting Ukraine was like a “movie”.

The US president is expected to try and shore up support for Kyiv during his speech in Poland later.

In his speech a stone's throw from the Kremlin, President Putin again blamed the West for Russia's invasion, complaining of Western hypocrisy and of withdrawing from "fundamental agreements". US President Joe Biden is expected to lay out his view of the war in Ukraine as a battle for democracy during a speech later on Tuesday. In Warsaw, the US president is expected to stress the vital role the United States has played in galvanising Western backing for Ukraine against Russian aggression.

The Daily Telegraph's Tim Blair says Ukraine greeted Joe Biden with air raid sirens as an indication of the US President's arrival.

Biden's 'inherently risky' trip to Ukraine took planning and logistics with details known to only a few.

[trip to Kyiv](/news/2023/2/20/us-president-joe-biden-makes-unannounced-visit-to-ukraines-kyiv) for a year, and the president made the final decision to go on Friday. That did not change at the airport or when they got into a motorcade of SUVs. Most of the people on board, Siddiqui said, were “heavy security”. They flew for about seven hours from Washington to the US military base in Ramstein, Germany, for refuelling. The next flight was to Poland, landing in Rzeszow-Jasionka Airport. And a telling detail: The shade on every window had been pulled down.

US President Joe Biden has said that Russia will “never have victory” in a landmark speech marking the one year anniversary of the war in Ukraine.

“I speak once more to the people of Russia. Mr Biden said Putin had sought the “Finlandisation” of NATO. The speech did not mention the fighter jets Kyiv so dearly wants. Russia” and that the war was Putin’s alone. Victories and tragedies, President Putin chose this war.” It means to finish yourself once and for all,” he said on Tuesday. It’s a tragedy. “There should be no doubt. He was wrong”. The two addresses looked very different. What does that mean?