US supports ‘a just and lasting peace’ for Ukraine, Harris tells Zelenskyy at Swiss summit

Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday pledged America’s full support in supporting Ukraine and global efforts to achieve “a just and lasting peace” in the face of The invasion of Russia, representing the United States in a international meeting about the war and meeting with Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss your country’s vision for ending this.

Arriving at the meeting site overlooking Lake Lucerne for what would be a 28-hour run to and from Washington, Harris announced $1.5 billion in U.S. assistance through the Department of State and the US Agency for International Development. This includes money for energy assistance, repairing damaged energy infrastructure, helping refugees and strengthening civilian security in the wake of the Russian President’s aggression. Vladimir Putin.

“War is not our choice. It is Putin’s choice,” Zelenskyy said alongside Harris before the private meeting. “And with this summit today, we will do everything we can to begin moving towards real peace.”

Harris responded: “I am here today to support Ukraine and leaders around the world in supporting a just and lasting peace.” She added that “while we long for that peace and work toward it, the United States is committed to helping Ukraine rebuild.”

President Joe Biden was in Los Angeles after three days in Group of Seven Summit in Italy, where he held talks with Zelenskyy. Biden flew from Europe to California for a Saturday night fundraiser with Hollywood stars George Clooney and Julia Roberts.

The decision to skip the Ukraine summit highlights the competing election year demands facing Biden as he tries to balance a complicated domestic and foreign policy agenda while running against the former president. donald trump. It also reflects the rising profile Harris has found in advocating for a second Biden term as the 2024 campaign heats up.

“Being vice president means you take a lot of hits for the team,” said Matt Bennett, who served as an aide to former Vice President Al Gore. “In the past, these moments on the global stage have been good for her. She appears presidential and very capable among world leaders.”

Zelenskyy, for months, publicly pressured Biden and other world leaders to participate in the meeting, even warning that their absence could further embolden Putin in his 28-month war. Biden ultimately decided to send Harris and White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan to represent the administration.

“Skipping the summit is a missed opportunity for the president and for the United States,” said Bradley Bowman, senior director of the Center for Military and Political Power at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies in Washington. “That said, sending the vice president with the national security adviser isn’t exactly sending junior varsity.”

Biden has increasingly turned to Harris as he tries to reassemble the coalition of voters behind his victory over Trump — and a coalition needed again to help win a second term. Harris took on a more visible role in presenting Biden’s proposal to a diverse sector of the Democratic base.

She visited an abortion clinic in Minneapolis to highlight the government’s record on the issue. She has launched an effort to highlight economic development under Biden’s watch, with a special focus on minority communities.

And she has crisscrossed the country to speak out on issues like marijuana legislation and gun violence, as Biden’s position in the winning 2020 coalition shows signs of erosion. She scheduled a visit to Atlanta on Friday to promote the administration’s economic agenda before boarding Air Force Two for her overnight flight to Switzerland.

But, like Biden, Harris also saw her standing among Americans decline. About 4 in 10 registered voters have a somewhat or very favorable view of Harris, according to a recent poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. About half have a somewhat or very unfavorable view of it, and about 1 in 10 don’t know enough to say. Her favorability ratings are similar to Biden’s.

The Trump campaign took Harris to task for her surrogate role in Switzerland, with spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt saying the vice president “has so far failed in every task entrusted to her” and “will continue to embarrass our country at the summit of Ukraine.”

Trump and his allies have occasionally attacked Harris, suggesting that a vote for Biden is actually a vote for Harris eventually becoming president.

The White House, in explaining Biden’s decision to skip the summit, noted that the president met with Zelenskyy twice in one week – on the sidelines of the G7 summit and the week before while they were both in France to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

Russia was not invited to the Swiss summit. Putin promised on Friday to “immediately” order a ceasefire in Ukraine and begin negotiations if Kiev begins to withdraw troops from the four regions annexed by Moscow in 2022 and renounce plans to join NATO. Ukraine called Putin’s proposal “manipulative” and “absurd”.

Biden may have softened the disappointment over his absence from the Ukraine meeting with a series of announcements in recent weeks aimed at further bolstering Ukraine.

G7 leaders this week announced a $50 billion loan package for Kiev that will leverage interest and revenue from more than $260 billion in frozen Russian assets.

Biden and Zelenskyy on Thursday signed a security agreement which commits the US for 10 years to the continued training of Ukraine’s armed forces, to more cooperation in the production of weapons and military equipment, and to greater sharing of information.

Biden has approved sending another Patriot missile system to Ukraine, something Zelenskyy says is desperately needed to defend against Russian attacks on Ukraine’s power grid and civilian areas, as well as military targets.

And late last month, Biden loosened restrictions that prevented Ukraine from using American weaponry to attack inside Russia. This allows attacks into Russia with the limited aim of defending the second-largest city of Kharkiv, which is 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the border and has been bombarded with attacks launched from inside Russia.