U.S. President Joe Biden, in Paris on June 8 to meet with French leader Emmanuel Macron, restated his “strong” support for Kyiv in its fight against the Russian invasion and warned that the Kremlin will not stop at Ukraine should it succeed with its aggression there.
Russian President Vladimir "Putin is not going to stop at Ukraine.... All of Europe will be threatened. We are not going to let that happen," Biden said, standing alongside Macron. "The United States is standing strong with Ukraine. We will not -- I say it again -- walk away."
Macron on June 8 hosted Biden in a state visit meant to highlight their strong partnership on global security issues.
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Macron told Biden in front of reporters: "I thank you, Mr. President, for being the president of the world's No. 1 power but doing it with the loyalty of a partner who likes and respects the Europeans."
Biden was received in Paris with pomp, and the two presidents laid wreaths at a monument honoring unknown fallen soldiers. They also met with World War II veterans.
The welcome ceremony kicked off at Paris’s landmark Arc de Triomphe. The presidents and first ladies then headed toward Elysee Palace in a parade procession, where they will have a working lunch.
Biden has been in France since June 5 and, along with Macron, attended the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings on June 6 in Normandy, before meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy the following day.
In his D-Day address on June 7, Biden sought to rally for the defense of democracy at home and abroad.
“As we gather here today, it’s not just to honor those who showed such remarkable bravery that day June 6, 1944,” Biden said. “It’s to listen to the echo of their voices. To hear them. Because they are summoning us. They’re asking us what will we do. They’re not asking us to scale these cliffs. They’re asking us to stay true to what America stands for.”
In Biden’s meeting with Zelenskiy -- their first since he signed legislation authorizing $61 billion in military aid for Ukraine -- the U.S. president announced a new $225 million package of ammunition shipments, including rockets, mortars, artillery rounds, and air-defense missiles.
Meanwhile, Macron told a joint news conference with Zelenskiy on June 7 that he was finalizing what he described as the “largest possible coalition” of military instructors for Ukraine.
Macron said Ukrainian pilots would start receiving training in the summer to use French-made Mirage 2000 fighter jets, which Paris has vowed to transfer to Kyiv.
Ukraine’s top commander said last week that he had signed paperwork allowing French military instructors to soon access Ukrainian training centers. Russia responded by saying they would be a “legitimate target” for Russian armed forces.
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Biden Warns That Autocrats Are Watching Support For Ukraine Closely
Kyiv has been pushing Europe to increase military support in recent weeks after Russia began gaining ground on the battlefield, particularly in Ukraine's eastern Kharkiv region.
However, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters in a conference call on June 7 that because of a recent infusion of U.S. aid, the Ukrainians have been able to “thwart Russian advances,” particularly around Kharkiv.
Putin said earlier on June 7 in St. Petersburg that Russia is “ready for talks” with conditions, including taking into account the “realities of today” -- an apparent reference to Russia's illegal annexation of four regions in southeastern Ukraine and Crimea.
The Kremlin leader claimed, however, that Europe is “defenseless” due to a lack of an early warning system.
He said Russia has “many more” tactical nuclear weapons than there are on the European continent, “even if the United States brings theirs over.”