US Congress members to visit Germany, UAE, to get more support for Kiev

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A group of US lawmakers will head to Germany, Poland, India, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in an effort to secure more support for Ukraine, The Hill reports. 

The Congressional lawmakers will include US Senators Mark Kelly, Kirsten Gillibrand, Cory Booker, and Ed Markey, as well as House of Representatives member Mondaire Jones.

"...the delegation will meet with a number of key foreign leaders in Poland, UAE, India, Nepal, and Germany to strengthen ties during this period of heightened global tension," the lawmakers said in a joint statement, quoted by The Hill on Sunday.

The upcoming nine-day trip was announced by Kelly in an e-mail to the newspaper on Sunday evening.

"This strong congressional delegation will have the opportunity to meet with US military leaders and troops in Poland in order to learn how the US can continue to support Ukraine and our NATO allies," the lawmakers’ joint statement says.

According to The Hill, Germany, Poland, India, and the UAE have not been active enough in cooperating with US-led efforts to isolate Russia.

Russia launched its special military operation in Ukraine on February 24, after the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR) appealed for help in defending themselves against Ukrainian provocations. Russia said that its special operation aims to demilitarize and "denazify" Ukraine and that only military infrastructure is being targeted.

Russian President Vladimir Putin believes the goal is to protect the people of Donbas, "who have been subjected to abuse, genocide by the Kiev regime for eight years."

In response to Russia’s operation, Western countries have rolled out a comprehensive sanctions campaign against Moscow, which includes airspace closures and restrictive measures targeting numerous Russian officials and entities, media, and financial institutions.