President Joe Biden's trip to Europe, marking the first anniversary of Russia invading Ukraine, sought to underscore the U.S.'s commitment to the war-torn country and its NATO and non-NATO allies on the border of Russian President Vladimir Putin's conflict.
And despite a small stumble as he boarded Air Force One for home, Biden seems to have succeeded at that mission, though questions remain about the compatibility of U.S. interests and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's own war aims.
'IMPEACH': BIDEN FACES CRITICISM FOR UKRAINE TRIP AMID PROBLEMS AT HOME
If a picture is worth a thousand words, photographs of Biden standing beside Zelensky in Old Kyiv's St. Michael's Square encapsulate the president's four-day trip, according to former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor.
"President Biden and President Zelensky standing there in St. Michael, in the center Kyiv, with air raid sirens even going off demonstrated the solidarity, and the commitment, and indeed the courage of those two leaders," the top diplomat to Ukraine for former Presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump told the Washington Examiner.
But Biden's anniversary address to roughly 30,000 people in Warsaw, Poland, broadcast around the world one day after his clandestine detour through Ukraine and organized without U.S. troops on the ground, has been criticized. The White House contends Biden was trying to convey "affirmation" instead of "celebration" before what is expected to be an especially difficult period of the war. Yet although Taylor agreed Biden did carry the "right message," Taylor, the United States Institute of Peace's vice president for Russia and Europe, encouraged the president to reconsider his "as long as it takes" rhetoric.
"The right message is the United States supports Ukraine in order for them to win," Taylor said. "That was a strong, strong message to the Ukrainians, but it was a strong message to the Russians as well. The Russians hope... that internal divisions, either in the United States or in Europe, or both, will mean that there's a reduction in support for Ukraine. And Biden demonstrated that's not the case."
"The last audience, of course, was the U.S.," he added. "He told Americans why we're there, why it's important for Ukraine to win... We will be so much better off economically and [with] security when the Ukrainians win, and, therefore, we should stay the course until they win."
Rutgers University history, journalism, and media studies professor David Greenberg compared Biden and the war in Ukraine to Bush and the 9/11 terrorist attacks, with many underestimating Ukraine's ability to withstand Russia's advances for one week, let alone one year.
"He has been deeply invested in it," Greenberg said of Biden, who has now traveled to Kyiv seven times as either president or vice president. "A major geopolitical event that became a central focus of his presidency."
However, one year on, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan reiterated Biden's reticence to pressure Zelensky into a peace deal with Putin, particularly as Zelensky seeks to reclaim Crimea.
"He is not going to sketch out in any kind of specifics a vision of a diplomatic end to the war, not because we don't believe that the war should end on just terms according to the principles of the U.N. Charter, but rather because, as he said many times, 'nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine,'" Sullivan told reporters as he previewed Biden's remarks.
Instead, Sullivan touted how Biden has led a more-than-50-country, pro-Ukraine coalition in responding to the largest land war in Europe in three-quarters of a century with military, economic, and humanitarian assistance, including a new $500 million aid package this week with more sanctions to come, as the president prepares for a reelection bid.
That package, though, did not incorporate General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcons, American single-engine multirole aircraft, which protesters outside Biden's hotel in Warsaw and electronic billboards along his motorcade's route implored the president to supply amid opposition from Republicans regarding spending.
Biden's meetings with Zelensky and address in Poland were complemented by sit-down discussions with Polish President Andrzej Duda, Moldovan President Maia Sandu, representatives of the "Bucharest Nine," a group of NATO's eastern flank allies formed after Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
Those leaders are among the "strongest supporting Ukraine because they're on the border, they're on the front lines with Ukraine," according to Taylor, though Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has created some concerns for the coalition.
"We provided critical security assistance to Ukraine and critical support to literally millions of refugees," Biden said before the B9 conversation. "We've helped ensure Ukrainians can access basic services. And together, we'll continue our enduring support for Ukraine as they defend their freedom."
"They discussed the strengthened defensive posture on NATO’s eastern flank, and President Biden reiterated the United States’ ironclad commitment to NATO’s Article 5," the White House added afterward. "They looked forward to further strengthening alliance unity and collective defense at the NATO Summit in Vilnius in July."
Earlier, during his 12 hours in Ukraine, Biden recalled his telephone call with Zelensky on the eve of Russia's invasion one year ago, Zelensky telling Biden he "could hear the explosions in the background" and Biden contemplating how "the world was about to change."
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"One year later, Kyiv stands and Ukraine stands. Democracy stands," Biden said. "You remind us that freedom is priceless; it’s worth fighting for for as long as it takes. And that's how long we're going to be with you, Mr. president: For as long as it takes."