'We is not going to waiver:' Biden reaffirms commitment to NATO and Ukraine

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U.S. President Joe Biden delivers a speech on NATO on the Vilnius University in Vilnius, Lithuania, after the tip of the NATO Summit, July 12, 2023.

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WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden galvanized NATO allies and reaffirmed U.S. commitment to Ukraine Wednesday as Russia’s devastating war on its neighbor marches past its five hundredth day.

Biden, who faces reelection next yr and has committed the lion’s share of military aid for Ukraine, described support for Kyiv’s fight for democracy as “the calling of our lifetime.”

Within the nearly 18 months since Russian troops poured over Ukrainian borders, marking the most important air, land and sea conflict since World War II, the U.S. has unleashed a war chest value greater than $41 billion to bolster Kyiv.

“We did what we all the time do. The U.S. stepped up, NATO stepped up and our partners within the Indo-Pacific stepped up,” Biden said in an address from Vilnius, Lithuania.

“We is not going to waver,” he said, promising that the U.S. will proceed to support Ukraine “for so long as it takes.”

Biden’s address follows a two-day high-level meeting of NATO leaders gathered in Lithuania’s capital, where member countries made security guarantees for Ukraine. The allies welcomed the arrival of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who reiterated calls to affix NATO and vowed its membership would make the world’s strongest military alliance stronger.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addresses a crowd at Lukiskiu Square in Vilnius, Lithuania, during a NATO Summit, July 11, 2023.

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Ukraine has sought NATO membership since 2002. It’s bordered by 4 NATO allies: Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania.

In September, Zelenskyy applied for a fast-track membership to affix NATO. He has since visited several European capitals to garner support for Kyiv’s bid.

Zelenskyy’s calls were overshadowed by the announcement on the primary day of the summit that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed to support Sweden’s bid to affix the NATO alliance.

Last May, Sweden and Finland began the formal means of applying to NATO, which requires approval from all 30 members of the alliance. In April, Finland joined the alliance. Following this summit, Sweden is ready to develop into the group’s thirty second member.