U.S. to ramp up support for Ukraine amid Trump’s incoming presidency, says Blinken

Reuters reports.

Meeting NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in Brussels, Blinken also said the deployment of North Korean troops to help Russia in the Ukraine war would get a "firm response".

According to Reuters, President-elect Trump, who has raised doubts about U.S. military aid to Ukraine, claims he will swiftly end Russia's war without specifying how, sparking concerns among U.S. allies that he might pressure Kyiv to accept peace on Moscow's terms. Biden is set to leave office on January 20.

After meeting with Rutte at NATO's headquarters, Blinken stated that they discussed continued support for Ukraine, where Russian forces have made progress on the eastern front, as well as the steps NATO must take to strengthen its defense industrial base.

He said that the outgoing U.S. administration would "continue to shore up everything they were doing for Ukraine."

"President Biden fully intends to drive through the tape and use every day to continue to do what we have done these last four years, which is strengthen this alliance," Blinken said.

He emphasized that the deployment of North Korean troops to support Russia in the conflict "demands and will receive a firm response."

Rutte stated that "Russia has not won" in Ukraine, which it invaded in February 2022.

"Obviously we have to do more to make sure that Ukraine can stay in the fight and is able to roll back as much as possible the Russian onslaught and prevent (President Vladimir) Putin from being successful in Ukraine," he said.

Blinken is expected to meet Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha later, according to a State Department schedule.

He will also meet NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe General Christopher Cavoli, top EU officials and British foreign secretary David Lammy in Brussels on Wednesday.