Joe Biden dials up ‘strong’ support for Kiev against Moscow

The White House reaffirms America’s unwavering commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Joe Biden on the phone to Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday. Picture: AFP

President Joe Biden gave “strong” backing on Thursday to Ukraine in its struggle with Russia and urged a diplomatic solution to the conflict in eastern Europe, while promising US help if Moscow attacks.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky issued a statement thanking Mr Biden for his “strong support” in a phone call lasting about an hour and a half.

And the White House said Mr Biden “reaffirmed the United States’ unwavering commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

Mr Biden placed a separate call to the leaders of NATO members Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia, which are all deeply concerned by Russian military threats to Ukraine. They “discussed Russia’s destabilising military build-up along Ukraine’s border and the need for a united, ready, and resolute NATO stance for the collective defence of allies”, the White House said.

Mr Biden had already spent two hours talking to President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, warning him that if Russian troops now massed next to Ukraine launch a major attack, Moscow would then face US economic sanctions “like none he’s ever seen”.

But the White House stressed that Mr Biden, in his calls on Thursday, was also pushing for reinvigorated diplomacy, including the stalled peace talks between Ukraine and Russia.

“Within the next couple days, we’re obviously going to continue talking with our European partners, we’re going to continue talking with our Russian partners and finding a way forward,” a senior administration official said.

Western and Ukrainian officials say they fear Russia – which seized Ukraine’s entire Crimea region in 2014 and also backed a separatist rebellion in the east – is preparing an even larger-scale invasion. Russia says it has deployed troops, estimated to number about 100,000, on the border out of fear that the former Soviet republic is becoming an outpost of NATO. Ukraine is nowhere near to entering NATO, although Washington insists that Russia should not have a veto on Kiev’s ambitions.

AFP