William Courtney, Former US Ambassador, Deputy Principal Researcher, RAND, Former US Ambassador to Kazakhstan and Georgia, commented on Joe Biden’s unannounced visit to Kiev:
“This visit shows how important Ukraine is to the United States. A number of other Western leaders have already visited Kiev. So I think President Biden is trying to show that the United States is equally committed to supporting Ukraine. Biden’s visit is an opportunity to remind Zelenskyyy and the Ukrainians of the West’s desire to help Ukraine maintain a qualitative advantage over Russian forces, both in terms of armament and quality of training. military. While Russia relies more on the number of less trained soldiers and equipment which is inferior to their Western counterparts. This war becomes a war in which the qualitative advantage of Ukraine opposes the Russian masses. It’s too hard to predict how things will turn out, but that could be all of the factors that will determine progress.”
“I would not underestimate the ability of Russian propaganda to distort current events. I won’t be surprised if they use this visit as a propaganda tool. But no matter what they say in Russia, the meeting with Zelenskyyy and Biden’s decision to go to Kiev is a sign of strong US support in light of all the difficulties and tragedies unfolding in Ukraine. So I’m not particularly worried about how Russian propaganda will distort the meaning of this visit. They have been lying since the beginning of this war. Even if the war ends on the battlefield, it will not end in courts of international jurisdiction. Vice President Harris’ statement in Munich shows a desire to hold Russia accountable for war crimes, and it will have a lasting impact on U.S.-Russian relations even after this war is over, however it ends”, added William Pomerantz, director of the Kennan Institute Woodrow Wilson International Center (William Pomeranz, director of the Kennan Institute of the Wilson Center).
