Statement comes after Russia\u2019s Vladimir Putin said his country would continue its nearly year-long military offensive
\n WARSAW
\nUS President Joe Biden has vowed Russia will never see victory in Ukraine, delivering a major speech in Warsaw hours after Vladimir Putin said Russia would continue its nearly year-long military offensive.
\nPutin, in his annual state-of-the-nation address Tuesday, accused the West of escalating the conflict and announced the Kremlin would suspend participation in the New START nuclear arms treaty with Washington.
\nThe Russian president said increasingly stringent sanctions on the country \u201cwill not succeed\u201d and vowed his country would keep fighting to \u201csystematically\u201d achieve its aims.
\nSpeaking hours later in the capital of NATO ally Poland, Biden pledged that \u201cUkraine will never be a victory for Russia \u2014 never\u201d.
\nThe 80-year-old leader had a day earlier made a surprise visit to Kyiv, his first since the invasion began and just days before the war\u2019s one-year anniversary.
\nSurrounded by a flag-waving crowd outside Warsaw\u2019s Royal Castle, Biden responded directly to Putin\u2019s accusations, saying the West \u201cis not plotting to attack Russia\u201d.
\nHe said Putin \u201cthought autocrats like himself were tough\u201d but faced the \u201ciron will\u201d of the United States and its partners.
\n\u201cThere should be no doubt: our support for Ukraine will not waver, NATO will not be divided and we will not tire.\u201d
\nBiden earlier met Polish President Andrzej Duda, saying his visit had come \u201cat a critical moment\u201d.
\nHe also reaffirmed Washington\u2019s \u201ciron-clad\u201d commitment to NATO\u2019s principle of collective defence.
\nDuda said that thanks to Biden \u201cwe can see that America can keep the world order\u201d.
\n\u2018Irresponsible\u2019
\nPutin\u2019s decision to suspend participation in New START was met with widespread international condemnation, though Russia\u2019s foreign ministry later said Moscow would continue to comply with the treaty\u2019s restrictions in a \u201cresponsible approach\u201d.
\nThe 2010 deal is the last remaining arms control treaty between the world\u2019s two main nuclear powers.
\nUS Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Russia\u2019s decision was \u201cdeeply unfortunate and irresponsible\u201d but that Washington was still willing to talk about the issue.
\nNATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the move meant that \u201cthe whole arms control architecture has been dismantled\u201d.
\nUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked Biden for his speech in a tweet, as well as \u201call of America for their leadership in rallying the world in support of freedom and for their vital assistance to Ukraine.\u201d
\n\u201cWe all stand united and brave \u2014 Ukraine, USA and our entire coalition of victory.\u201d
\nZelensky met Tuesday in Kyiv with another coalition partner, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
\nWhile facing some pro-Russian sentiment in her right-wing ruling coalition, Meloni pledged that Rome \u201cdoes not intend to waver\u201d in its support for Ukraine.
\nHowever, sending fighter jets, which Zelensky has argued are vital for ending the war, is \u201cnot on the table\u201d for now, she said.
\n\u2018Critical moment\u2019
\nBiden is due to meet Wednesday with the leaders of nine eastern NATO members who \u2014 though staunch supporters of Ukraine \u2014 fear the war spilling over.
\nWhen the Kremlin launched its Ukraine offensive, the so-called \u201cspecial military operation\u201d was planned to be a rapid conquest leading to capitulation and the installation of a pro-Russian regime.
\nSince then, Russia has been forced to give up ground but has kept up a barrage of drone and missile attacks, while the military and civilian toll has spiralled.
\nVarious Western sources estimate the conflict has caused 150,000 casualties on each side.
\nZelensky blasted Russia for \u201cmercilessly killing\u201d civilians Tuesday in the southern city of Kherson as local officials reported at least five deaths following strikes there.
\nAFP reporters saw dead bodies covered with plastic sheets or foil blankets on the streets near a bus stop and a supermarket.
\nKherson is the capital of one of the four regions \u2014 along with Donetsk, Lugansk and Zaporizhzhia \u2014 that Russia claims to have annexed but has never fully controlled.
\nIn Donetsk, Moscow\u2019s relentless struggle to capture the city of Bakhmut has exposed tensions between the Russian military and the Wagner mercenary group.
\nThe private fighting force\u2019s head, Yevgeny Prigozhin, on Tuesday accused military chiefs of refusing to sufficiently supply his group, saying this amounted to \u201ctreason\u201d.
\nRussia\u2019s defence ministry responded by detailing ammunition deliveries and denouncing \u201cabsolutely false\u201d reports of shortages.
\n\u2018Getting out of control\u2019
\nChina meanwhile said it was \u201cdeeply concerned\u201d about the conflict, which it said was \u201cintensifying and even getting out of control\u201d.
\nBeijing has sought to position itself as a neutral party, while maintaining close ties with strategic ally Russia.
\nChina\u2019s top diplomat, Wang Yi, was in Moscow for talks, and due to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov Wednesday.
\nThe Kremlin has said Wang may also meet Putin during his visit, according to the official TASS news agency.
\nStoltenberg on Tuesday echoed US concerns that China could supply Russia with weapons to help it pursue its campaign in Ukraine.
\nThe Western allies worry they are falling behind in supplying enough shells for Kyiv\u2019s artillery to fend off a renewed Russian offensive.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Statement comes after Russia\u2019s Vladimir Putin said his country would continue its nearly year-long military offensive WARSAW US President Joe Biden has vowed Russia will never see victory in Ukraine, delivering a major speech in Warsaw hours after Vladimir Putin said Russia would continue its nearly year-long military offensive. Putin, in his annual state-of-the-nation address […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":315455,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-315429","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n