Secretary of State Antony Blinken will reiterate his strong support for Ukraine against Russian aggression this week, James O’Brien, deputy director of the State Department for European and Eurasian Affairs, said Monday.
O’Brien’s statement comes amid continuing concerns that rising tensions in the Middle East caused by the war between Israel and Hamas will prevent Washington from maintaining the same level of military and diplomatic support for Kiev.
Speaking to reporters on the eve of Blinken’s trip to Brussels, O’Brien stressed that, upon participating in the first meeting of the Ukraine-NATO Council at the level of foreign ministers, which opened in the Belgian capital, the head of the foreign policy department will confirm the continued commitment of the United States and its allies to support Ukraine.
“This is part of the process of finding a place in the alliance, (membership in) which, as we have always said, is the future of Ukraine,” the deputy secretary of state said.
In response to a question related to the publication of the German newspaper Bild (the publication claims that the United States and Germany are influencing Kiev, pushing it to negotiate with Moscow), O’Brien emphasized that Washington does not follow such a policy.
“We have always said that this is an issue that Ukraine must resolve,” explained the deputy director of the State Department.
The deputy secretary of state also said that next week the head of the State Department will represent the United States at the OSCE meeting, which will be held in the capital of North Macedonia.
As O’Brien explained, the Secretary of State will also address the issue of rising tensions in the Western Balkans, where NATO is considering increasing its military presence amid tensions in the northern regions of Kosovo.
