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Vice President Kamala Harris left Wednesday morning for Poland and Romania, where she is expected to deliver a message that the United States stands “firmly and resolutely” for NATO allies and will continue to provide assistance to the Ukrainian people, senior administration officials said.
Officials, anticipating her trip as Russia’s war with Ukraine dragged on into its fourteenth day, said she would “demonstrate the strength and unity of the NATO alliance and US support for NATO allies on the eastern flank in the face of Russian aggression.”
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On Thursday in Warsaw, she will hold bilateral meetings with Polish President Andrzej Duda and Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. Harris will also meet Canadian President Justin Trudeau, who will be in Poland at the same time.
During her visit, officials said the vice president intended to engage with Ukrainian refugees. More than 1 million refugees fled from Ukraine to Poland after the Russian invasion on 24 February. She is also expected to meet with staff from the embassy in Warsaw, as well as staff from the embassy in Kyiv who moved to Poland due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Vice President Kamala Harris arrives aboard Air Force Two Wednesday, March 9, 2022 at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland. Harris travels to Poland and Romania for meetings about the war in Ukraine. (Sol Loeb/Pool via AP)
On Friday, Harris is also set to meet with US and Polish military personnel in Warsaw to thank them for their service, before traveling to Bucharest, Romania, for a bilateral meeting with Romanian President Klaus Iohannis and embassy staff in Bucharest.
Senior administration officials said the vice president during the trip will discuss with Poland and Romania additional troops in those countries and neighboring countries, as well as other force adjustments to strengthen NATO’s deterrence and defense.
Officials said Harris would also reaffirm the need for humanitarian and military assistance to Ukraine and present ways to “continue to support” the Ukrainian people.
Harris is also set to discuss how the US and NATO allies can inflict serious economic damage on Russia and ensure that these actions lead to Moscow’s “strategic defeat” through sanctions, while also protecting “international rules and norms.”
Vice President Kamala Harris arrives aboard Air Force Two Wednesday, March 9, 2022 at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland. Harris travels to Poland and Romania for meetings about the war in Ukraine. (Sol Loeb/Pool via AP)
“Harris will be coordinating with close allies on how to stay united on certain core principles of freedom, peace, and security that have brought peace and stability to the United States and Europe since World War II in unprecedented ways,” a senior administration official said.
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Poland on Tuesday offered to transfer its entire fleet of MiG-29 fighters to the United States in exchange for the opportunity to buy American F-16s as part of a deal to strengthen the Ukrainian air force while updating the Polish air force with NATO aircraft. .
“After consultations between the President and the Government, the authorities of the Republic of Poland are ready to immediately and free of charge deploy all their MiG-29 fighters at the Ramstein airbase and transfer them to the government of the United States of America,” the Polish Foreign Ministry said in a statement. “At the same time, Poland asks the United States to provide us with used aircraft with appropriate operational capabilities. Poland is ready to immediately establish the conditions for the purchase of aircraft.”
Polish President Andrzej Duda speaks to media during a press conference with North Macedonian President Stevo Pendarovski at the Office of the President in Skopje, North Macedonia, Friday, November 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski, File)
The Poles also demanded that any other NATO member countries that have their own MiGs take similar action. It could be Bulgaria and Slovakia.
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Representatives of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense have been asking for help for days with supplies ranging from helmets to ammunition and fighter jets. Poland appears to have been ready to perform almost two weeks after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
A senior administration official said the United States has been “for some time” in dialogue with Poland on how to “best provide a variety of security assistance to Ukraine.”
“And this is a dialogue that will definitely continue up until and as part of the Vice President’s trip,” the official said, adding that it is “a key priority for us and for all of our NATO allies.”
“We have been in talks with the Poles, as well as with all of our allies, on how best to get security assistance to Ukraine and what could be most helpful,” the official continued, adding that they expected the talks to “continue” during Harris’s visit. .
However, the official noted that this is “not a one-time situation.”
Early Tuesday morning, a bipartisan group of US lawmakers sent a letter to President Biden urging him to back the deal with Poland.
But Pentagon spokesman John Kirby distanced himself from the US, saying that while the decision to hand over the planes to Ukraine was in the hands of the Polish government, the US intervention “is of great concern to the entire NATO alliance.”
“It’s just not clear to us if there’s a substantive rationale for this,” he said in a statement. “We will continue consultations with Poland and our other NATO allies on this issue and the complex logistical challenges it presents, but we do not consider Poland’s proposal to be justified.”
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He said the US would continue talks with Poland and the rest of NATO on this issue.
Ukrainian pilots were trained on Soviet-era MiG aircraft. Poland, which joined NATO in 1999, sought to replace donated MiGs with used F-16s.
Poland plans to transfer 28 MiG-29s. According to the CIA World Factbook, “Ukraine has a broad defense industry capable of … maintaining and modernizing Soviet-era combat aircraft.”
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki told reporters in London earlier on Tuesday that despite the decision, “neither Poland [nor] NATO are parties to the war in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Russia has warned that it will view support for the Ukrainian air force as an escalation of the conflict and may retaliate.
The UK, which has its own forward air force, has said it will support Poland’s move as war rages across Eastern Europe.
Meanwhile, officials said there has been a “very strong degree of American-European unity” throughout Russia’s war with Ukraine, which they say “will be a major part of this trip.”
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“While in Poland and Romania, the Vice President will discuss all the steps we have already taken together, but just as important, will focus on how we move forward together and make sure we continue to stay united,” the official said. .
Regarding Harris’s preparations for this week’s trip, a senior administration official said the vice president is “immersed in this matter, as are the president and the rest of the national security team” and “working intensively on a daily basis on all issues related to the ongoing crisis, resulting from the Russian invasion.”
Harris held “a series of specific sessions” on Poland and Romania, as well as briefings and discussions with experts.
“This is her third trip to Europe in the last couple of months. You know, when she first went to Paris, we were already starting to see signs of a potential Russian build-up. So she has been focused on this issue for a while,” the official said, adding that she also attended the Munich Security Conference in Germany and numerous bilateral meetings.
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The official said there was not just “extensive preparation for this particular trip” but said the last few months “have been very focused on what has tragically become a defining issue for the entire administration.”
The comments about Harris’s preparation came after the vice president faced widespread criticism after she attempted to explain the Ukraine crisis during an appearance on The Morning Hustle earlier this month.
Asked at one point to explain the overseas crisis “in layman’s terms” to interested listeners, Harris slowly replied: “Ukraine is a country in Europe. It exists next to another country called Russia. a smaller country called Ukraine, so it’s basically wrong.”
Meanwhile, Harris’s trip came just a day after President Biden announced a ban on Russian oil imports to the US. The Biden administration made the announcement after consultation with European allies and partners, but acknowledged that many partners have been unable to make the move due to their heavy reliance on Russian energy.
Biden’s ban on Russian oil imports came just a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on Western allies to “boycott” Russian oil.
Zelenskiy is also calling on the United States and European allies to create a no-fly zone over Ukraine as Russia continues its brutal and unprovoked invasion.
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Pleading with Western allies on Monday, Zelenskiy asked: “How many more deaths and casualties does it take to secure the skies over Ukraine?”
Biden and NATO ruled out a no-fly zone over Ukraine, saying its introduction would bring the US and NATO directly into confrontation with Russia and widen the conflict.
Ukraine is not a member of NATO and, therefore, is not subject to Article V of the NATO alliance, which states that if one member country is attacked, all member countries will take action to provide assistance.
Michael Ruiz of Fox News, Tara Prindiville and The Associated Press contributed to this report.