(PresidentialWire.com)- President Joe Biden made a surprise visit to Ukraine recently meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the country’s capital of Kyiv.
The trip was a way for Biden to emphasize America’s commitment to support Ukraine in its war against Russia, close to the one-year anniversary of Russia invading its neighbors.
Following the visit, U.S. national security officials said they gave Russian President Vladimir Putin a heads up that Biden would be traveling to Ukraine as he was en route.
When all of this became public, Russia tried to get ahead of it all, with the Kremlin saying that they guaranteed that Biden would be safe when he was in Ukraine. But, on Monday, one of the president’s top aides ultimately denied those claims.
Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser, did confirm that Moscow was given advanced notification that Biden was traveling to Ukraine – even if it was just a couple of hours in advance. That notice was given so potential misunderstandings could be avoided.
Speaking with reporters in Poland a day after Biden’s visit, Sullivan commented about how Russia responded when he said:
“They acknowledged receipt. End of story.”
During his visit to Ukraine, Biden promised the war-torn country that the U.S. would be sending even more weapons as well as monetary aid. This, naturally, angered Russia, which has been upset with the U.S. and many western countries for supporting Ukraine at all in this fight.
Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, wrote on his personal Telegram channel:
“Biden, having previously received security guarantees, finally went to Kyiv. He promised many weapons and swore allegiance to the neo-Nazi regime to the grave. And, of course, there were mutual incarnations of victory, which will come with new weapons and courageous people.”
Sullivan, though, quickly fired back, saying it was nonsense to even suggest that security guarantees were given about Biden. Sullivan also went along with Biden on his trip to Ukraine.
The national security adviser explained that they gave Moscow notification of the trip so that they didn’t misunderstand it if they saw an increase in security activity in that region of Ukraine. As Sullivan explained:
“Just to let them know he would be there in this time period, and the means by which he was traveling, and then he would be out on this timetable, the means by which he was traveling out.
“We conveyed that information.”
Russia didn’t respond at all to the notification, Sullivan said, “other than to acknowledge receipt of the notification.”
Extra security personnel was needed for Biden’s trip because he was entering an active war zone in Ukraine, and where the United States didn’t have any military presence at all. In fact, America only has some staffers at the embassy there, too.
Many Republicans jumped all over Biden for the trip, saying he’s paying more attention to other countries than his own. Pennsylvania Republican Representative Scott Perry, for instance, tweeted:
“Breathtaking that President Biden can show up in Ukraine to ensure their border is secure, but can’t do the same for America.”
