U.S. defense secretary to accompany Biden to NATO, Poland -Pentagon

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin gives a statement next to Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov (not pictured) in Sofia, Bulgaria, March 19, 2022. REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will accompany President Joe Biden in Europe this week for talks at NATO headquarters in Brussels and in Poland as allies respond to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Pentagon said on Monday.

Austin just returned from Europe on Saturday after a week of meetings with NATO allies.

(Reporting by Phil Stewart and Ismail Shakil; Editing by Leslie Adler)