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WASHINGTON President Biden on Wednesday assured Ukraines president that the United States remained opposed to Russian aggression in the region, using an Oval Office meeting to affirm his support for a leader unnerved by Americas chaotic exit from Afghanistan.

The meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine also allowed Mr. Biden to send a message to Russia that he was committed to standing by a strategic partner that Moscow has invaded.

The partnership between our nations grows stronger and its going to become even stronger, Mr. Biden said, noting the two countries had a similar value system that included a commitment to a Europe that was whole, free and at peace.

Despite a delay of a few days, due in part to the unfolding crisis in Afghanistan, Mr. Zelensky finally got the Oval Office reception he had been seeking since his election in 2019. His earlier efforts to secure such a meeting with President Donald J. Trump led to Mr. Zelensky unwittingly becoming entangled in an international incident that led to Mr. Trumps first impeachment trial.

Mr. Zelensky, for his part, thanked the United States for a new $60 million defense aid package and said he wanted to focus on security issues, including the Russian occupation of Crimea.

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Speaking through a translator, he expressed condolences for the 13 U.S. service members killed last week in Afghanistan. We are very compassionate, since we have been dealing with such tragic losses for eight years in a row, Mr. Zelensky said, referring to those killed fighting in eastern Ukraine against Russian-backed separatists.

During the meeting, Mr. Biden also told Mr. Zelensky that he wanted to travel to Ukraine, which no American president has visited since President George W. Bush in 2008. Mr. Biden visited Ukraine regularly as vice president.

A show of support may be necessary. Ukrainians have been discouraged as they have watched Americas unruly and abrupt exit from Afghanistan. Their worry is that commitments, understandings and confidence that theyve had from and with the United States could be jeopardized by this, said William B. Taylor Jr., who served as U.S. ambassador to Ukraine between 2006 and 2009, and who was a star witness during Mr. Trumps first impeachment trial.

They almost desperately want to believe that the longtime support for Ukraine, over administrations of all kinds, is going to persist, he said. But they cant help but be concerned when they see the United States quickly, and with some disarray, pulling out of a country where weve been for 20 years.

Mr. Bidens objective ahead of the meeting was to demonstrate a clear commitment to Ukraines sovereignty, officials said. The decision to allow Mr. Zelensky to be only the second European leader to visit the White House since Mr. Bidens inauguration sent a strong signal that Ukraine remains a priority for the administration.

Aug. 24, 2021, 4:52 p.m. ET

Supporting Ukraine is critical for an administration that has made strengthening democratic norms at home and abroad as a key objective, foreign policy experts said.

Mr. Biden also signed off on a new $60 million aid package with Ukraine that included Javelin anti-armor missiles and other lethal weapons, an official said, and announced new agreements on security, energy and climate coordination after bilateral meetings with the visiting Ukrainian delegation.

The Biden administration has now provided more than $400 million in security assistance to Ukraine this year, an official said.

The Trump administration also provided lethal weapons to Ukraine, reversing a decision not to do so by the Obama administration, when Mr. Biden was vice president. Former President Barack Obama limited American aid to Ukraine to nonlethal items like body armor, night-vision goggles and first aid kits, to avoid tempting President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia to raise the stakes.

The Biden administration was also expected to sign a revised strategic defense framework to boost cooperation on security, cybersecurity and intelligence sharing, setting the stage for closer cooperation that will improve the capabilities of the Ukrainian military, officials said.

Overall, however, Mr. Bidens record on Ukraine has been mixed, experts said. The administration dropped its efforts earlier this year to block the completion of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which will transport natural gas directly from Russia to Germany, allowing Russia to bypass Ukraine and deprive it of revenue from transit fees.

In a joint statement released after the meeting, both countries stated that they continue to oppose Nord Stream 2, which we view as a threat to European energy security.

The Biden administration has also not yet announced a nominee to serve as ambassador to Ukraine, a position that has remained vacant since 2019 when Marie L. Yovanovitch was ousted from her job for apparent disloyalty to Mr. Trump.

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Biden Affirms Support for Ukraine Against 'Russian ...

WASHINGTON President Biden welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to the White House on Wednesday and White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki insisted that first son Hunter Bidens well-paid work in the poor post-Soviet country would not be discussed by the leaders.

Biden and Zelensky took no questions from reporters after exchanging pleasantries in the Oval Office. They then met privately for nearly two hours.

Bidens predecessor President Donald Trump was impeached by House Democrats in 2019 for asking Zelensky to look into Hunter Bidens reported $83,000 per month position on the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma, despite no relevant industry experience.

He was later acquitted in the Senate.

Psaki curtly gave a single-word answer no when National Public Radio reporter Scott Detrow asked her during her daily press briefing if Biden intended to discuss his sons work with Zelensky.

Detrow asked Psaki, The events, the demands, the phone calls that led up to the 2019 impeachment Im just wondering, did they factor in any way in the way the White House prepared for this meeting, specifically the fact that Hunter Biden was a key part of those conversations with the last administration and Zelensky? And did President Biden expect in any way, shape or form to address that dynamic in todays meeting?

The first son, who is currently offering to sell his novice artworks to anonymous buyers for up to $500,000, joined Burismas board in 2014 while his then-vice president father led the Obama administrations Ukraine policy. He reportedly left the company in 2019.

Hunter Bidens reported income of nearly $1 million per year for advising Burisma came despite Ukraines intense poverty. The countrys annual per capita GDP is less than $4,000, according to World Bank data.

The White House daily schedule said Biden intended to discuss with Zelensky our backing for [his] efforts to tacklecorruptionand implement a reform agenda based on our shared democratic values.

But there was no mention of corruption during a brief press availability in the Oval Office.

The presidents involvement with his sons overseas business deals often is murky. But The Post reported in October that an email recovered from a laptop formerly belonging to Hunter Biden indicated he introduced his father to a Burisma executive in 2015 despite Bidens 2019 claim that I have never spoken to my son about his overseas business dealings.

The Biden campaign said last year that no such meeting happened as described, but this year The Post published additional records indicating that the visiting Burisma exec likely met Biden at Cafe Milano in DCs Georgetown neighborhood at a dinner with various other foreign business partners of the then-second son also in attendance.

The public portion of Bidens meeting with Zelensky contained familiar foreign policy themes and made little news.

Biden vowed that the US was firmly committed to Ukraines independence in the face of Russian aggression.

The United States remains firmly committed to Ukraines sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of Russian aggression, Biden said at the start of the long-awaited meeting with Zelensky.

Today were going to discuss how the US can continue to support Ukraine as it advances its democratic reforms agenda, he said.

Biden did not answer shouted questions about Afghanistan, even amid fierce criticism of his handling of the US military withdrawal and a leaked phone call he had with ousted Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in which he asked Ghani to create the perception that the Taliban werent winning, whether its true or not.

Bidens meeting with Zelensky was quietly postponed two days ago as a result of the chaotic exit of US troops from Afghanistan.

In 2019, Trump urged the Ukrainian leader to investigate Biden and his son for alleged corruption as Zelensky asked for a White House invitation. The Senate lateracquitted him of abuse of power.

Zelensky on Wednesday pushed Biden for increased military aid, COVID-19 vaccine donations and backing for Ukraines bid forNATO membership.

I would like to discuss with President Biden here his vision, his governments vision of Ukraines chances to join NATO and the timeframe for this accession, if it is possible, Zelensky said in the Oval Office.

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Biden hosts Ukraine president, Psaki says 'No' to talk of ...

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In media news today, Chris Hayes downplays Biden's phone call with ex-Afghanistan president Ghani, ex-CBS anchor Dan Rather gets crushed for tweet comparing pro-lifers to the Taliban, and an MSNBC analyst likens the Texas abortion law to slavery

An old tweet from White House press secretary Jen Psaki is coming back to haunt her amid reports of the controversial July phone call between President Biden and then-Afghan President Ashraf Ghani as the administration pursued the military withdrawal from Afghanistan.

According to a transcript of the July 23 presidential callreviewed by Reuters, Biden didnt anticipate the Talibans rapid advance across Afghanistan, which ended when its fighters stormed Kabul on Aug. 15 and Ghani fled the presidential palace. Instead, Biden focused much of the 14-minute call on the Afghan governments "perception" problem, Reuters reported.

"I need not tell you the perception around the world and in parts of Afghanistan, I believe, is that things are not going well in terms of the fight against the Taliban," Biden said. "And there is a need, whether it is true or not, there is a need to project a different picture."

PSAKI DODGES QUESTIONS ABOUT BIDEN PRESSING AFGHAN PRESIDENT TO CHANGE PERCEPTION OF TALIBAN DOMINANCE

That exchange has fueled accusations that Biden misled the nation about Afghanistan's stability in order to follow through with the military withdrawal despite the underlining threat from the Taliban.

However, a 2019 tweet from the then-CNN contributor called for transparency in the early weeks of then-President Donald Trump's Ukraine scandal that ultimately resulted in his impeachment. It chiefly involved a phone call Trump had with counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy about investigating Biden and his son Hunter.

"It is not just the call transcript. The whistleblower complaint would likely have more details. We need both. And not just the call," Psaki wrote at the time.

Some critics appeared to hail Psaki's call for transparency while others called out her apparent double standard.

"100% Agree," Spectator contributor Stephen Miller reacted, adding "Will be weird if journos decide to just ignore this one."

MSNBC'S CHRIS HAYES DOWNPLAYS BIDEN'S PHONE CALL WITH GHANI: NOT A SCANDAL ANY MORE THAN THE WAR ITSELF WAS

"But now you refuse to answer questions on Bidens call with Ghani? What happened to the promise that this administration will be about truth and transparency?" political strategist VF Castro told Psaki.

Psaki did not immediately respond to Fox News' request for comment.

At the White House press briefing on Wednesday, Psaki dodged questions about Biden's phone call with Ghani.

"Well, I'm not going to get into private, diplomatic conversations or leaked transcripts of phone calls," Psaki said. "But what I can reiterate for you is that we have stated many times that no one anticipated that the Taliban would be able to take over the country as quickly as they did or that the Afghan National Security Forces would fold as quickly as they did."

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"So even the content of the reporting is consistent with what weve said many times publicly," she continued. "Ill also note something the president said in his press conference around the same time of this reported phone call: The Afghan government and leadership has to come together. They clearly have the capacity to sustain the government in place. The question is, will they generate the kind of cohesion to do it."

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Psaki's tweet on Trump phone call with Ukraine president comes back to haunt her - Fox News

From left: Globe reporter Mark MacKinnon, longtime Globe fixer Mohammed Sharif Sharaf and former Canadian military translator Jawed Haqmal in Kyiv on Aug. 29.

Evgeny Maloletka /Evgeny Maloletka

A plane carrying Afghan translators, including one who worked for The Globe and Mail and another who served the Canadian military, as well as their families, has arrived in Kyiv following a daring operation by Ukrainian soldiers stationed at Kabul airport.

The rescue, which was co-ordinated by the Ukrainian military, the office of President Volodymyr Zelensky and The Globe, may pave the way for other Afghans fleeing the Taliban to make their way to Canada. Ottawa has promised to resettle vulnerable Afghans provided they can make their way to third countries, and The Globe has learned that the Canadian government has asked the Ukrainian government whether it would be willing to transport other Canada-bound refugees to Kyiv, where they would be processed before resettlement.

The rescue of the translators was carried out early Friday morning in Kabul, a day after the last Canadian evacuation plane left Afghanistan, and hours after the deadly suicide attack at one of the gates to Hamid Karzai International Airport, which resulted in the deaths of at least 170 Afghans trying to flee the country, as well as 13 U.S. soldiers. Following the attack, which was claimed by the local affiliate of the so-called Islamic State, the U.S. said that only foreign nationals and no more visa-clutching Afghans would be allowed to enter the airport.

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Two Canada-bound Afghans describe the daring operation by Ukrainian soldiers that managed to get them and their families into Kabul airport and onto an airplane out of the country. The plane carrying fixers and translators, including one who worked for The Globe and Mail, touched down in Kyiv on Sunday. The Globe and Mail

Despite that restriction, as well as the growing risks to coalition forces ahead of the scheduled withdrawal of the last U.S. forces on Aug. 31, Ukrainian troops went out into the city of Kabul on foot to escort two minibuses carrying the Canada-bound translators and their families, 19 people in all onto the airfield.

The soldiers had photographs of the licence plates of the minibuses, and they surrounded and escorted the vehicles for the last 600 metres into the airport.

The convoy entered [the airport] because the Ukrainians came out. We just sent them the plate numbers of our vehicles and they came to the local bazaar to find us. They said Ukraine? we said Yes! and they took us inside, said Mohammed Sharif Sharaf, a 49-year-old father of five who spent 10 years as a fixer and translator assisting The Globes coverage of Canadas role in the war for Afghanistan.

After making it into the airport, the 19 Afghans were put onto a military cargo aircraft which was stationed in Kabul as part of Ukraines little-known contribution to the NATO-led effort in the country and flown to Islamabad along with a group of other Afghans the Ukrainians had rescued previously. In the Pakistani capital, they were transferred onto a chartered commercial plane that carried the group to Ukraine, with a brief stop in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku.

In a tweet, Mr. Zelensky said 360 more Ukrainians and citizens of other countries had arrived in Kyiv on Saturday. Our military, intelligence and diplomats have done a brilliant job. Ukraine does not leave its citizens in trouble in difficult times and helps others!

Ottawa says 1,250 Canadians and family members still stranded in Afghanistan

Taliban agree to allow foreign nationals, Afghans to leave, international statement says

Shribman: Pullout from Afghanistan not the end of U.S. power, just another cycle of frustrated ambition

Two previous efforts, planned by the Canadian military before its departure from Kabul airport, failed to get Mr. Sharafs group into the airport, as did another attempt organized by the U.S. State Department. Those operations had relied on the Afghans and their families being able to reach designated meeting points near the airport gates, which proved impossible amid the chaos outside the facility, where thousands of Afghans have congregated in hopes of being airlifted out of Kabul, which fell to the extremist Taliban on Aug. 15.

The Ukrainian operation succeeded where others had collapsed because the Ukrainian military deployed special forces troops into the city on foot to conduct the rescue.

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The evacuees said they were stunned that Ukrainian troops had taken risks to save them that Canadian and U.S. forces had not.

Everybody was surprised. I tried for the last month to have someone get us. We asked the Americans, the Canadians, the Qataris, everybody and no solution. They were scared to come out, said Jawed Haqmal, a 33-year-old father of four who worked two years with Canadian special forces in Kandahar. The Ukrainian soldiers were angels for us. They did an exceptional job. They have big hearts.

Retired captain Jrmie Verville of the Royal 22nd Regiment said his former translators escape was a story that really showed his will to live, to save his family. He called Mr. Haqmal a smart man who put all his effort to seek help.

When Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was asked Monday whether Canadian troops should have taken on a more robust role to get people out, he said: This airbridge operation with Canadian troops, American troops, allied troops, securing the airport to get as many people out as possible during the month of August was an extremely important operation, and Canadians can be proud of the contribution we made in getting almost 4,000 people.

But we know with the end of this airbridge, as the Americans and others withdraw from the airport, the work needs to continue. That is why we are working with regional partners. We are continuing as a global community to put pressure on the Taliban, including at the United Nations, to ensure that people with travel documents or one of our international allies like Canada are able to leave Afghanistan and come to have new lives elsewhere. This is something we will continue to do into the coming months along with our allies and partners.

About 360 people, 80 of whom are Ukrainian citizens, evacuated from Kabul arrive in Kiev, Ukraine, on Aug. 28, 2021.

Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

Mr. Sharaf, Mr. Haqmal and their families arrived in Kyiv carrying laissez-passer documents that were issued to them a day before the Ukrainian operation by the office of Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino. The documents state that the bearers are to be treated as Canadian citizens, and that they had visas to travel to Canada.

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The documents were enough to get them out of Kabul, but created hours of bureaucracy at Kyivs Boryspil Airport on Saturday, where border guards had no idea how to treat the evacuees, many of whom had expired passports or only identification cards issued by the previous Afghan government. The Sharaf and Haqmal families, as well as others on the plane, were eventually granted 15-day humanitarian visas to enter Ukraine, in part because of promises from the Canadian embassy that they would swiftly be resettled.

What this extraordinary effort demonstrates is that we can and will continue to be very agile in providing Afghan refugees whatever visas or paperwork they need to signal clearly that they are Canada-bound and should be allowed to get here, Mr. Mendicino said in a telephone interview.

While the dramatic Kabul operation likely wont be repeated because of the deteriorating security situation in the country, the Islamabad-Kyiv trail that was blazed may be used to help move other Canada-bound Afghans who have made it as far as Pakistan, so they can get to Ukraine where they could be screened and processed for resettlement to Canada.

Canada has additionally requested our further support and we will be happy to help, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said in reply to e-mailed questions from The Globe. He said that the Kabul rescue had demonstrated the capabilities of his countrys military, and why it should finally be accepted into the NATO alliance, a long-time goal of the Ukrainian government. In these horrific circumstances, our military officers demonstrated bravery, high class and exemplary professionalism.

Roman Waschuk, a former Canadian ambassador to Kyiv who aided the operation by putting The Globe in contact with a senior official in Mr. Zelenskys office, said the Ukrainians had agreed to the rescue mission in large part because of the support their country had received from Canada during its own seven-year war with Russian-backed forces in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbass. Canada has provided some $700-million in financial assistance to Ukraine since the outbreak of the conflict, and has deployed 200 troops on a rotational basis since 2015 on a mission to train the Ukrainian troops for battle.

This is, in part, a return on the investment of successive Canadian governments in training Ukraines military. Theres a lot of respect and appreciation for what Canadas done over the past seven years, Mr. Waschuk said.

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Rachel Pulfer, executive director of the Toronto-based group Journalists for Human Rights, said the Ukrainian rescue was one of several that had occurred since Canada ended its evacuation on Thursday. She said that her organization collaborating with other groups, as well as individual Canadian journalists had made of list of 275 Afghan media and human-rights workers and their families who wanted to leave, but who had been left behind by the Western airlift. Twenty-nine of those had since made it out of the country, including Mr. Sharaf and his family, who count for seven of that figure.

Every one of those 29 people represents a miracle of human ingenuity and resilience in the face of the longest odds imaginable, Ms. Pulfer said. The bleak reality is weve got hundreds more to go the numbers are climbing daily and much, much more to do to get those most at risk to safety.

With files from Robert Fife

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KYIV, Ukraine -- Ukraine's president on Tuesday urged closer ties between the ex-Soviet nation and NATO and the European Union in a speech marking the 30th anniversary of Ukraine's independence.

Ukraine celebrated its independence day on Tuesday with a military parade and massive festivities in the capital Kyiv. Opening the parade, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that a strong Ukraine is a country that dreams ambitiously and acts decisively.

Such a country becomes NATO's Enhanced Opportunities Partner; such a country is officially supported by others when it applies to join the European Union," Zelenskyy said.

Ukraine didn't officially become independent until the collapse of the Soviet Union in December 1991. But like most of the 15 former Soviet republics, it declared its sovereignty immediately after the failed hard-line coup against reformist Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev.

On Aug. 24, 1991, the Ukrainian parliament adopted the Act of Declaration of Independence of Ukraine, reestablishing the countrys independence after more than 70 years of being part of the Soviet Union. Less than four months later, Boris Yeltsin and leaders of other Soviet republics declared the Soviet Union defunct and Gorbachev stepped down on Dec. 25, 1991.

The 30th anniversary of Ukraine's independence came as the country is locked in a bitter tug-of-war with Russia, which in 2014 annexed Crimea and has since been backing a separatist insurgency in eastern Ukraine, and Kyivs efforts to shore up support among Western nations.

Territories may be occupied, but one can't occupy the people's love for Ukraine. One can create a desperate situation and make people get (Russian) passports, but one can't issue passports for their Ukrainian hearts, Zelenskyy said Tuesday. If some people in Crimea and Donbass (region in eastern Ukraine, controlled by Russia-backed separatists) are afraid to talk about it, it doesn't mean they are afraid to think about it. They will come back, because we're family.

The center of Kyiv on Tuesday turned into a large venue for concerts and other festive events marking the anniversary. Thousands of people flocked to the central Maidan square, which over the past 30 years has been a rallying point for Ukrainians.

The popular uprising of 2013-2014, which ousted pro-Russia President Viktor Yanukovych and triggered the years-long confrontation with Moscow, started on Maidan square.

Delegations from 46 countries and blocs, including 14 presidents, attended the parade in Kyiv. The day before, they took part in the Crimean Platform summit called by Ukraine to build up pressure on Russia over the 2014 annexation of Crimea that has been denounced as illegal by most of the world.

The annexation and Moscows backing of rebels in the east of Ukraine, where more than 14,000 have been killed since 2014 in the fighting between separatists and Ukrainian forces, plunged Russias relations with the West to post-Cold War lows. The tensions rose once again this year after Russia increased troop numbers near its borders with Ukraine, including in Crimea, eliciting international outrage.

Russian President Vladimir Putin published an article last month, describing Russians and Ukrainians as one people and accusing the West of working methodically to rupture historic links between the two neighbors and to turn Ukraine into a key bulwark to contain Russia.

But polls in Ukraine show that the vast majority of Ukrainians support the independence of the country. If a referendum on Ukraine's independence was held this year, 70.3% of the country's residents would vote for it, according to a survey of the prominent Kyiv International Institute of Sociology.

The generation of Ukrainians, born both in the west and the east of the country after it became independent, see themselves as a separate European nation that is not tied to the myths of the Soviet era and is indifferent to the Kremlin's pleas about the common past, the institute's director, Volodymyr Paniotto, told The Associated Press.

Paniotto said that Zelenskyy's generation, as well as younger Ukrainians, have a pro-Western mindset and will determine Ukraine's path for decades to come from the Soviet past to a European future.

Firefighter Serhiy Zhadko, 29, who came to watch the parade with his 7-year-old son, told the AP that Ukrainians had to (go through) two revolutions in order to finally choose their path to Europe, but were ready to defend our choice.

Yes, there are lots of problems in Ukraine, theres a war and poverty, but we look forward and not back on the Soviet past, Zhadko, 29, said.

NATO and the EU keep mum about when Ukraine can become a member, despite Kyiv's persistence. The EU only went as far as to sign a landmark Association Agreement with Ukraine in 2014, which stipulated free trade and visa-free travel between the two.

Ukraine's Western allies expect Kyiv to keep pushing reforms, including in the judiciary, and the creation of effective anti-corruption mechanisms that would stem the endemic graft in the country.

Ukrainian democracy is a work in progress which yet to learn the lessons of fighting corruption and to limit the influence of the oligarchs, Ukrainian political analyst and head of the Penta Center think tank Volodymyr Fesenko told the AP.

Western partners directly link the speed of (Ukraine's) integration into Euro-Atlantic blocs with success in reforms and the fight against corruption, he said.

Associated Press writer Daria Litvinova contributed to this report from Moscow.

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