US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will discuss support for Ukraine during talks in Paris next week with French President Emmanuel Macron, the State Department announced Wednesday.
France is one of the main military suppliers to Ukraine, which faces an onslaught from Russia.
President Joe Biden’s request for billions of dollars in new US military aid to Kiev is stalled in the House of Representatives, which is led by his rival Republicans.
“Secretary Blinken will meet with French President Macron to discuss support for Ukraine, efforts to prevent an escalation of the conflict in Gaza and a number of other important issues,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters.
France has advocated a permanent ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, while the United States, Israel’s main ally, recently passed a UN Security Council resolution calling for a ceasefire during the month of Ramadan.
It will be the first visit in nearly two years to France by Blinken, a fluent French speaker who has lived mostly in Paris. Macron pays a state visit to Washington in December 2022.
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After Paris, Blinken will head to Brussels for talks with NATO foreign ministers ahead of the alliance’s 75th anniversary summit in Washington in July.
Blinken will also hold a tripartite meeting in Brussels with EU leaders and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who is seeking to expand his country’s historic alliance with Russia.
Blinken and the European Union will provide “support for Armenia’s economic resilience as it seeks to diversify its trade partnerships and meet humanitarian needs,” Miller said.
Armenia was angry last year over Russia’s failure to prevent Azerbaijan from reclaiming the Nagorno-Karabakh region from ethnic Armenian rebels. (AFP/Z-3)
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