KYIV, Ukraine — President Joe Biden secretly slipped into Kyiv on Monday for a historic visit to show U.S. solidarity with war-torn Ukraine, pledging an additional half-billion dollars in military aid and declaring Russian leader Vladimir Putin to be “dead wrong” in his underestimate of Western support and resolve.
Biden’s surprise visit, his first as president, comes four days ahead of the first anniversary of Moscow’s invasion of its neighbor, which has devastated parts of Ukraine but drawn fierce resistance and galvanized the West into pouring in assistance. In a reminder of the risks of such a trip, air-raid sirens wailed in Kyiv, the capital, during Biden’s visit.
Appearing with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the heavily fortified presidential palace, Biden said that Ukraine’s resilience over the last year had been “astounding” and that “the whole world sees it.” The U.S., he said, would support Kyiv “as long as it takes” to repel the Russian invasion, which began Feb. 24, 2022.
