Bortnikov: FSB failed to give security guarantees to Biden during Kiev visit

Russia’s FSB failed to give security guarantees to US President Joe Biden during his February 20 visit to Kiev. On this subject informed FSB Director Alexander Bortnikov in an interview with the Shot telegram channel.
“The United States notified Russia of Biden’s visit to Kiev through diplomatic channels. We did not give guarantees about his safety,” the telegram channel quoted Bortnikov as saying.
Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev wrote on his Telegram channel on Feb. 20 that Biden had traveled to Kiev “having already received security guarantees.” He did not specify that he had given the American president such guarantees.
US Presidential Security Advisor Jake Sullivan informed that the US side “in order to avoid conflict” informed Russia of Biden’s trip to Kiev hours before he left.
Joe Biden made an unannounced visit to the Ukrainian capital on February 20. It was his first trip to Kiev as US president. The White House called unprecedented the president’s visit to the capital of a country in conflict where the US military does not control critical infrastructure.
Biden’s visit had been planned for several months with participation from the National Security Council, Pentagon, Secret Service and Intelligence officials, Sullivan said. Biden was briefed on every step of the plan and “every possible contingency” and made the final decision after consulting with key national security experts.
According policy , Biden’s plane took off Feb. 19 from Joint Base Andrews and arrived first at Ramstein Air Base in Germany and then in Poland. From there, Biden took an overnight flight to Kiev on a heavily guarded train with its windows rolled up.
During his visit, Biden announced a new $500 million military aid package for Ukraine, including artillery shells, howitzers, Javelin anti-tank systems and radars.