The American president was received in kyiv on Monday by his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky. A visit to the Ukrainian capital which takes place a few days before the first anniversary of the Russian invasion.
US President Joe Biden traveled to Ukraine, in kyiv on Monday February 20, alongside Volodymyr Zelensky. A trip that took place a few days before the anniversary date of the Russian invasion of Ukraine a year ago, on February 24.
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This visit, according to General Dominique Trinquand, former head of the French military mission to the UN, means “full support for Ukraine”. “For the President of the United States to travel directly to Kyiv, it shows there is full commitment”he said on Monday on franceinfo.
franceinfo: What does Joe Biden’s visit to Ukraine mean? The American president promised new arms deliveries but he did not talk about a timetable?
Dominique Trinquand: This means, first of all, full support for Ukraine. For the President of the United States to travel directly to kyiv, and to warn the Russians elsewhere of this visit as a security measure, it shows that there is a complete commitment.
Now, we won’t go into the details. We know very well that for planes, it’s a long term. Ukrainian pilots, even if they are trained on Western planes, will not be able to engage in combat for a year. It is known that American tanks must be produced, so it will not be until the fall. We know that the other tanks are in the process of being put in place, the first French tanks at the end of the week. So it’s not a question of giving deadlines, it’s simply a question of showing full support for Ukraine.
Why warn Moscow a few hours before this surprise visit?
This is part of the security measures. We warn the Russians by saying: “Now you’ve been warned. If you hit, you know what you’re doing and the escalation you’re causing.” So the Russians, who don’t want an escalation with the United States, take the necessary measures.
What consequences can this visit of the American president have on the battlefield, both on the Ukrainian side but also on the Russian side?
On the Ukrainian side for their morale, it’s excellent. This is very important for them at a time when we are wondering about the Russian attacks on the Ukrainian front. For the Russians, it is also a warning. It is to tell them: “Don’t have any illusions, we will go all the way.”
“The timeline is extremely interesting because this visit comes on the eve of a big speech that Vladimir Putin is announcing in Moscow. So Putin is going to have to take that into account in some way.”
General Dominique Trinquandat franceinfo
Either Vladimir Putin will pretend nothing, which is his habit, or he will take it into account. But it’s a way to counter him before his speech and to mark “don’t have any illusions, we will be until the end with Ukraine and therefore you will have to measure your limits in the operation you have launched “.
Joe Biden’s visit to Kyiv is an extremely important sign of support, Volodymyr Zelensky said. This is also a very important sign from all Westerners?
The American president is the leader of the Westerners in two respects in the processes which are launched with Rammstein. We know that there are 50 countries, so it is much larger than NATO and it is the United States that chairs, so they are the leaders and they are the ones who coordinate.
And then, within NATO, we know very well that the greatest ally is the United States. As long as they maintain their support, the Europeans will maintain it. That doesn’t mean they wouldn’t hold if the United States didn’t support, but it’s an essential part of their support.