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Antony Blinken arrives in Poland for talks on security and Ukrainian refugees
The National Post reported, citing Reuters, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived on Saturday in the southeastern Polish city of Rzeszow, close to the Ukrainian border which hundreds of thousands of people have crossed following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Blinken, the Biden administration’s top diplomat, was set to meet Polish officials, including the NATO and European Union member state’s Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau.
The State Department said Blinken would discuss security and humanitarian assistance in response to the invasion and thank Poland for welcoming those displaced by the fighting in Ukraine.
According to the U.N. refugee agency, more than 1 million refugees have fled Ukraine since the invasion began on Feb. 24, most of whom have crossed into Poland.
Blinken arrived in Poland from Brussels, where he met with foreign ministers from the NATO alliance, the G7 grouping and the EU on Friday to discuss the West’s efforts to deter Russia through a program of harsh sanctions.
In Poland, he will also meet a bipartisan U.S. Congressional delegation led by Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Gregory Meeks, a Democrat, and including the committee’s ranking Republican Michael McCaul.
NATO members are providing military aid to Ukraine’s government forces for their fight against Russia’s military, much of it passing through Poland.
The alliance has declined Ukrainian demands to enforce a no-fly zone over the country.
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Blinken said on Friday that NATO, which he called a defensive alliance, was seeking to prevent the war from spreading beyond Ukraine.
“We seek no conflict, but if conflict comes to us, we’re ready for it,” Blinken said, “and we will defend every inch of NATO territory.”
Source: nationalpost
