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IN POLAND, CLOSE TO THE BORDER WITH UKRAINE – The United States will resume diplomatic operations in Ukraine this week for the first time since the Russian invasion began in February, US officials said.
The diplomats will return to the western city of Lviv, where Ukrainians and foreigners have sought refuge from violence raging elsewhere in the country, a first step towards reopening the US embassy in the Ukrainian capital, officials said.
“This will underscore our commitment and make it clear that we will work for our diplomats to return to our embassy in Kyiv as soon as possible,” said a senior State Department official, who, among others, spoke on condition of anonymity. the Biden administration. rules, told reporters.
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The announcement comes after Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin made a brief stop in Kyiv, the first high-level visit to the United States since the start of the war on February 24. The visit came after a number of European leaders traveled to Kyiv to hold talks with President Vladimir Zelensky, who is seeking greater external support for his country’s military efforts.
Blinken and Austin flew to Poland before what was planned as a visit to Kyiv, which would not be revealed until they left Ukraine. However, Zelensky announced on Saturday that the two US officials would travel to Kyiv.
While other countries, including Britain, have announced the resumption of embassies in Kyiv, the United States has not yet taken that step.
Officials outlined additional steps that Blinken and Austin passed on to Ukrainian officials during their brief stay in the capital, where they also met with Ukraine’s foreign and interior ministers. They asked reporters to keep the name of the place in Poland, which Blinken and Austin used as a starting point for their visit for security reasons.
Also this week, the Biden administration will announce the nomination of a new ambassador to Ukraine. Bridget Brink, a career diplomat, now serves as ambassador to Slovakia. There has been no confirmed US ambassador to Ukraine since Marie Jovanovic was ousted in 2019.
Blinken and Austin also told Zelensky that the Biden administration would provide $ 713 million in military funding to Ukraine and more than a dozen other countries. Funding will allow these countries to purchase new weapons to increase their stockpiles or, in some cases, to replenish the weapons provided to Ukraine. Ukraine will receive more than $ 300 million, the State Department official said to purchase more sophisticated air defense systems and weapons storage compatible with those used by NATO countries instead of weapons designed by the Soviet Union.
The aid “will provide support for the capabilities Ukraine needs, especially for the battle of Donbass,” the official said, referring to the region of eastern Ukraine, which borders Russia and where Moscow is concentrating its forces. The Biden administration will also sell up to $ 165 million in “non-standard ammunition” to Ukraine, which it can use for its existing weapons systems.
A senior U.S. defense official said Austin would brief Zelensky on promised howitzer supplies and ongoing training of Ukrainian troops on U.S. artillery systems. part of a pre-announced set of funds from the United States. Officials declined to say where the training was taking place is taking place.
Following a visit to Kyiv, Austin will travel to Germany for a meeting Tuesday with defense officials from a number of countries, including Ukraine.
Asked about Zelensky’s decision to announce the visit to the United States some time ago, when officials went to great lengths to keep planning secret, the State Department official said: “This is his country. … We planned any number of contingencies. “
Officials said restoring the diplomatic presence in Ukraine would allow embassy staff to coordinate more closely with Ukrainian staff and ultimately provide more consular services.
“This is the first step and we expect to be able to speed it up in the coming days and weeks,” the State Department official said.
In February, when US officials warned that Russia’s military build-up around Ukraine could signal an impending invasion, the United States moved diplomats from its embassy in Kyiv to Lviv. He stopped these operations later that month.
Why is the Ukrainian Donbass a target for Russian forces?
The defense spokesman said the Pentagon was still considering the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol as contested, despite claims by Russia that it had completed a lengthy campaign to seize the city on the Sea of Azov.
“For all the Russian allegations they have, it is certainly not behaving like an army that thinks it has it because it continues to hit Mariupol,” he said.
He said Moscow had deployed about a dozen Russian tactical teams to the key southern port. Mariupol, Russia’s main target, could help Russia secure a land bridge to Crimea, which Moscow annexed in 2014, and could also be used as a starting point for attempts to push north to other parts of Ukraine.
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The spokesman said fighting in the greater Donbass region, which includes Mariupol and areas held by Russian-backed separatists, remains unconvincing.
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