Biden vows NATO support, dozens of new air defence systems for Ukraine
Al Jazeera
US president spotlights support for Ukraine as he looks to use NATO summit to reset his stumbling re-election campaign.
United States President Joe Biden has forcefully pledged to defend Ukraine against Russia’s invasion, announcing dozens of new air defence systems for Kyiv, as he welcomed NATO leaders for a summit in Washington, DC.
The address on Tuesday was Biden’s highest-profile policy speech since a halting performance in a debate on June 27 that raised questions about his fitness for office as well as fears that he may lose the November 5 election to his predecessor and NATO sceptic, Donald Trump.
Speaking off a teleprompter, his voice confident and strong, Biden declared that NATO was “stronger than it’s ever been in its history”. And that is a good thing, he said, “because this moment in history calls for our collective strength”.
“Autocrats want to overturn the global order” and “terrorist groups” continue to plot “evil schemes”, Biden said, while in Europe, Russian President Vladimir Putin seeks to wipe “Ukraine off the map”.
“But make no mistake, Ukraine can and will stop Putin,” the US leader said, “especially with our full, collective support. And they have our full support.”
