Since Russian forces withdrew from the area around Kyiv, several Western leaders have arrived in the Ukrainian capital to show support. US officials have held preliminary talks on sending a high-ranking government official to Ukraine, according to a source familiar with the talks. While Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are unlikely to visit Kyiv themselves soon, officials have said they will send Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin or Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. However, sources said the decision was far from final and the visit could not take place. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson paid a surprise visit to Kyiv last weekend. U.S. officials later said Biden was not planning a trip. “We are not currently planning a trip by the President of the United States to Ukraine,” spokeswoman Jen Psaki said on Monday. He said more importantly that a presidential visit was a continuous supply of weapons and support. “What is most important for the Ukrainian leadership is that we speed up our weapons and get the help and security systems they need, and that is what we are focusing on,” he said. In a telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday, Biden briefed his counterpart on a new $ 800 million security assistance package that includes 11 Mi-17 helicopters, 300 Switchblade drones, 18 Howitzer and chemical protection equipment. . During a last-minute visit to Poland last month, Biden told the humanitarian that he would like to visit Ukraine to see the situation up close. “They will not let me, it is understandable, I suppose, to cross the border and take a look at what is happening in Ukraine,” Biden said. The White House had said before the trip that they had not explored any visit to Ukraine. Speaking on Thursday, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said Biden “would love the opportunity to go to Ukraine to show solidarity with the Ukrainians” and that the possibility was discussed before Biden’s trip to Warsaw last month. Discussions included what kind of footprint it would take to ensure the president’s safety, Sullivan said. But “it was not under any serious planning,” he added, declining to comment further on reports that a high-ranking US official may visit Kyiv in the near future. CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, Natasha Bertrand, and Betsy Klein contributed to this report.
