Biden to snub Ukrainian invitation

The Ukrainian president asked his American counterpart to come to Kiev ‘as soon as possible’

There are no plans for US President Joe Biden to visit Kiev, despite a plea by his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky, the White House revealed on Monday.

Speaking at a press briefing, Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre announced that a visit to Ukraine was not in the president’s schedule.

“I don’t have any travel plans to announce or preview at this time,” she stated.

The confirmation from Jean-Pierre comes just three days after Zelensky extended his American counterpart an invitation to visit the Ukrainian capital.

“I am convinced that your arrival in Kiev in the coming days, which are crucial for stabilizing the situation, will be a powerful signal and contribute to de-escalation,” Zelensky told Biden, according to a statement issued by his press service. This was quickly followed by anonymous statements to the American news network CNN, attributed to US officials, who called a visit “extremely unlikely.”

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However, according to Jean-Pierre, a trip isn’t on the cards.

“We don’t have travel to confirm right now,” she said. “That is what the president’s schedule looks like and it’s certainly not confirming to go to visit Ukraine.”

As well as inviting Biden, Zelensky also told the US president about the “importance” of American efforts in the consolidation of international support of Ukraine.

Zelensky noted the importance of US efforts in the consolidation of international support of Ukraine, while also stressing it was critical to provide effective security guarantees.