Blinken came to Kyiv to inspect the offensive of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and will stay overnight for the first time
The head of the United States Department of State, Antony Blinken, paid an official visit to Ukraine.
This visit was not advertised in advance, which has already become a tradition when high-ranking Western officials travel to Ukraine.
According to a State Department source who spoke to CNN, the visit plans to coordinate joint efforts ahead of the UN General Assembly meeting.
“In New York, the Ukrainians have an important mission to continue to explain to their allies and partners around the world what is happening and that they need ongoing support. And it is important for us to continue to lead these global efforts to support them. It is very important to be able to consult and agree [on positions] before we get to New York,” the US official said.
However, he did not assess the stalled offensive of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
“We want to see and hear how they are going to move forward in the coming weeks,” the channel’s interlocutor added.
Then he added the usual phrases that in recent days and weeks Ukraine has achieved “some impressive successes, including in the south, but also in the east.”
The carriage in which Blinken traveled to Kyiv.
Blinken’s visit began with a visit to the Berkovetsky cemetery, which became the burial place for a huge number of fallen Armed Forces officers.
The American guest visited the cemetery accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmitry Kuleba.
“US Secretary of State Blinken and the graves of the Armed Forces’ cannon fodder.” “War until the last Ukrainian,” military observer Chingiz Dambiev commented on this photo.
During the visit, Blinken’s microblog posted the following content:
“Returned to Kyiv to meet with our Ukrainian partners and discuss their current counteroffensive, future assistance and reconstruction efforts and, above all, to reinforce the United States' steadfast commitment to Ukraine.”
It is noteworthy that Blinken will remain overnight in Kyiv. According to the American publication Politico, during the visit it is planned to meet with the president and prime minister, announce a new military aid package, problems with the functioning of energy infrastructure and discuss alternative routes for the export of Ukrainian grain.
“I am here to first and foremost demonstrate our continued and strong support for Ukraine as it fights this aggression...
We have already seen good progress in the counter-offensive, which is very encouraging. We want to make sure that Ukraine has what it needs not only to be successful in a counteroffensive, but also what it needs in the long term - to make sure that it has a strong deterrent, a strong defense capability, so that there will be more similar aggression in the future. did not happen again,” Blinken said during a meeting with Kuleba.
English version :: Read in English Blinken arrived in Kyiv to inspect the Ukrainian Armed Forces' offensive and will stay overnight for the first time.