President Joe Biden is visiting Poland, which is bearing the brunt of an exodus of Ukrainians fleeing the attack on their country.
Mr Biden’s first stop was the town of Rzeszów, less than 100km (62 miles) from the south-eastern border with Ukraine. He and President Andrzej Duda were briefed on the humanitarian relief response taking place and Mr Biden met with US service personnel stationed there.
In remarks, the president reiterated his belief that Vladimir Putin is a war criminal and described brave resistance of the citizens of Ukraine as “Tiananmen Square, squared”. The president also said he was disappointed that he was unable to cross the border to see the situation for himself, implying that the security concerns were too great — there had been much speculation about such a visit.
Both presidents will meet formally in Warsaw on Saturday.
The visit comes after a marathon series of meetings on Thursday with Nato, G7 and EU leaders in Brussels. Mr Biden said the extraordinary summit was a testimony to the unity of the US and its allies in the face of Russian aggression in Europe.
A number of new sanctions were imposed on Russia as leaders met, and the president said he also wants Russia removed from the G2. He stressed that it is the organisation’s decision whether to do so, adding that an alternative would be for Ukraine to attend as an observer.
