Politico: Kyiv fears US pressure to make a deal with Russia

The political leadership of Ukraine believes that there are people in the White House and the US Congress who would like to persuade Kyiv to conclude a deal with Moscow, writes Politico edition.

“I think there are people on Capitol Hill and in the administration who want to calibrate military assistance to encourage Ukrainians to make some kind of deal,” said one of the advisers to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

In his assessment, some in the administration of US President Joe Biden will be happy to “use” the Republican-controlled Congress to curtail military assistance in order to encourage Kyiv to agree to reduce its military goals. The publication also points out in this regard that CIA director William Burns had previously urged Zelensky to make progress on the battlefield as quickly as possible, as the scale of military support could begin to fall.

The publication emphasizes that such actions by Washington would run counter to Biden’s statements during his visit to Kiev, during which he reaffirmed “commitment to democracy, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine” and promised to support Ukraine “for as long as necessary.” At the same time, the failure to clearly define the military goals of Western partners could derail this promise, Zelensky’s adviser said.

Biden visited Kyiv with an unannounced visit by train from Poland yesterday, February 20. He stayed there for about five hours, after which the American leader returned. In Kiev, Biden expressed support for Ukraine, held talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and, among other things, announced a package of US military assistance to Kiev worth a relatively modest $450 million. The package will include artillery shells, missiles for HIMARS systems and howitzers, Javelin anti-tank systems and radars, but not the long-range weapons that Ukraine previously requested. Biden acknowledged that “very difficult days, weeks and years” lie ahead for Ukraine.

On February 18, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that a Russian victory in the Ukrainian conflict “would be extremely” dangerous for NATO, so it was necessary continue support Ukraine. The secretary general also believes that the countries of the alliance should prepare for confrontation with Russia: modernize their own armies, strengthen relations between European countries and the United States, and generally strengthen the “resilience” of Western society.