US chief repeats his assist for Ukraine as Russian president says Moscow is suspending the New START treaty.
US President Joe Biden has rallied NATO allies in Poland, proclaiming “unwavering” assist for Kyiv as his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin broadcasts suspension of Moscow’s position in a nuclear arms treaty with Washington.
Contemporary from his shock go to to Ukraine, Biden used Tuesday’s journey to garner assist for Ukraine because the struggle enters its second yr, for ever and ever.
“One yr in the past, the world was bracing for the autumn of Kyiv,” Biden stated, “I can report: Kyiv stands sturdy, Kyiv stands proud, it stands tall and, most significantly, it stands free.”
Biden spoke after assembly NATO ally and Polish President Andrzej Duda, a vocal proponent of stronger Western assist for Kyiv.
The declaration adopted an unannounced journey on Monday to Ukraine, marking the primary time in current reminiscence {that a} US president made a visit to a warzone not managed by US troops.
Poland has NATO’s longest border with Ukraine and has been the primary route in for weapons and out for refugees. The 2 leaders have been anticipated to have mentioned Poland’s safety and scaling up NATO sources there.
In his state of the nation handle Earlier than the primary anniversary of the marketing campaign in Ukraine, Putin stated on Tuesday Moscow was freezing its participation within the New START treaty, a key nuclear arms cope with Washington.
Putin additionally accused the West of escalating the battle and promised that Russia would hold preventing to “systematically” obtain its goals.
The Russian chief accused Western powers of wanting “to be accomplished with us as soon as and for all”, however stated more and more stringent sanctions on Russia “is not going to succeed”.
Moscow says it can observe curbs
Russia’s overseas ministry stated the nation will nonetheless observe curbs imposed by the New START treaty.
The treaty, the final nuclear arms management pact between the world’s two primary nuclear powers, had been prolonged till early 2026.
After Putin’s speech, France and the UK known as on the Kremlin to reverse its determination to droop participation within the treaty.
Earlier on Tuesday, the overseas ministers of the Group of Seven (G7) stated their nations would proceed to impose financial prices on Russia and urged the broader worldwide neighborhood to reject what they described as Moscow’s “brutal expansionism”.
“We’ll impose additional financial prices on Russia, and on people and entities – inside and out of doors of Russia – that present political or financial assist to those violations of worldwide legislation,” the leaders stated in a joint assertion.
In the meantime, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni stated that Rome would hold supporting Ukraine in resisting Russian assaults however has no plans to supply fighter jets to Kyiv.
“In the intervening time the availability of planes will not be on the desk,” Meloni stated at a information convention alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The Italian chief, on her first journey to Ukraine since Russia’s invasion, has been a staunch supporter of Kyiv, however others in her right-wing coalition have been extra ambiguous on the difficulty.
