US President Joe Biden will travel to Poland, a crucial ally in the Ukraine crisis, during his visit to Europe this week. Biden is set to fly from Washington DC to Brussels, Belgium, today to discuss Russia's invasion of Ukraine with NATO and European allies.

On Friday, he will visit Warsaw, Poland, which shares its borders with Ukraine, and hold a bilateral meeting with President Andrzej Duda on Saturday, AP reported.

The President will not visit Ukraine, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Sunday.

Why is Biden going to Europe?

Biden’s trip to Europe will focus on discussing the international response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and rallying support for the Ukrainians.

“The president is traveling to Europe to ensure we stay united, to cement our collective resolve, to send a powerful message that we are prepared and committed to this for as long as it takes,” Jake Sullivan, National Security Adviser at the White House, said on Tuesday.

Poland is not just hosting American troops, but has also given shelter to more than 2 million refugees from Ukraine since the beginning of the conflict on February 24.

During the trip, Biden will first visit Brussels where he will hold meetings with NATO allies, G7 leaders and European Union leaders on Thursday to rally support for Ukraine. The discussions will focus on “transatlantic efforts to impose economic costs on Russia” apart from providing humanitarian support to those impacted by the war.

Prior to his European visit, Biden hosted a call on Monday with French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and discussed Russia’s brutal tactics in Ukraine, including attacks on civilians.

What to expect from the visit?

Biden and other world leaders are likely to unveil a new package of measures against Russia after the European visit. European and American officials have been discussing potential measures that could be announced at the end of the meeting since the NATO summit was first broached two weeks earlier, CNN reported.

The new measures could include fresh sanctions on Russian oligarchs, limitations on imports of energy products from Russia and additional restrictions on Moscow’s finances.

At the same time, the leaders could announce measures to provide assistance to Ukraine, which could include shipments of military equipment or financial aid.

The US could also deploy more troops to NATO on the eastern front.

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(Edited by : Thomas Abraham)

First Published:Mar 23, 2022 2:32 PM IST