U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is heading to Brussels, Belgium, on Tuesday as Washington looks for ways to “surge” military aid to Ukraine in the final days of President Joe Biden’s term.
After Brussels, Blinken will proceed to Lima, Peru, for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings, followed by stops in Manaus and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for a summit of the 20 largest economies, the G20. He will join Biden in Peru and Brazil.
President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to hold face-to-face talks on Saturday on the sidelines of the APEC summit, a meeting anticipated to last about one-and-a-half hours, according to sources familiar with the plans who spoke to VOA on the condition of anonymity.
On Wednesday, Blinken will engage in discussions with his NATO and European Union counterparts to coordinate continued support for Ukraine, while President Biden meets with President-elect Donald Trump at the White House. Officials said Biden will ask Trump not to “walk away” from Ukraine.
North Korea’s direct support for Russia’s war in Ukraine is expected to be a focal point during Blinken’s discussions with European counterparts and will likely feature on the agenda in talks between U.S. officials and their counterparts at APEC.
Ukraine has reported that North Korean troops are actively engaged in combat operations in Russia’s Kursk region, prompting condemnation from several European nations over the increasing military collaboration between Russia and North Korea.
Meanwhile, Ukraine remained on high alert for air attacks on Monday, with the country’s top military commander reporting that tens of thousands of Russian troops were prepared to advance on Russia’s Kursk region, where Ukraine seized territory in August this year.
Charles Kupchan, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, told VOA that Trump might attempt to “broker a cease-fire in Ukraine,” a prominent foreign policy pledge he made during his campaign.
Kupchan, however, noted, “It will not be as easy as he promised… It will take a long time to bring [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelenskyy and [Russian President Vladimir] Putin to common ground,” as the conflict has stretched on for more than two-and-a-half years.
Trump’s political allies have indicated that the incoming administration will prioritize achieving peace in Ukraine over enabling the country to reclaim Crimea and other territories occupied by Russia.
After the U.S. presidential election, the State Department said that Blinken spoke with his European counterparts. They included the French minister for Europe and foreign affairs, Jean-Noël Barrot, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, and the United Kingdom’s foreign secretary, David Lammy, among others. Officials say talks covered the situation in Ukraine and the implications and threats posed by Russia’s decision to introduce North Korean troops into the war on Ukraine.
Blinken’s coming meetings in Brussels also follow a gathering of European leaders Thursday in Budapest, where they addressed transatlantic relations, support for Ukraine, and other pressing issues in light of Trump’s victory in last week’s U.S. presidential election.
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