President Biden has proclaimed the United States a staunch ally of Ukraine amid the Russian invasion there, and he re-upped that commitment Tuesday with a New York Times op-ed stressing America's main goal in the conflict: "to see a democratic, independent, sovereign, and prosperous Ukraine with the means to deter and defend itself against further aggression." In the piece, Biden first lays out what the US will do to advance that mission, including continuing to implement tough sanctions against Russia; working with ally nations and other partners to alleviate the food crisis in Ukraine brought about by the war; and providing "billions more" in financial aid, as well as a slew of advanced weapons systems that will let Ukraine "more precisely strike key targets on the battlefield."
Biden affirms the US will keep "reinforcing NATO's eastern flank" to protect allies, and that he stands by the "nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine" philosophy—meaning "I will not pressure the Ukrainian government—in private or public—to make any territorial concessions," as has been suggested by some. The president also notes that, beyond helping Ukraine protect its sovereignty, he doesn't want to take Putin on. "We do not seek a war between NATO and Russia," he writes. "As much as I disagree with Mr. Putin, and find his actions an outrage, the United States will not try to bring about his ouster in Moscow." And, "so long as the United States or our allies are not attacked, we will not be directly engaged in this conflict, either by sending American troops to fight in Ukraine or by attacking Russian forces." Still, "Americans will stay the course with the Ukrainian people because we understand that freedom is not free." His essay in full here. (More Russia-Ukraine war stories.)
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