U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will reaffirm U.S. support for Ukraine this week, the State Department said on Monday, on the highest-level U.S. visit since President Donald Trump's impeachment over his handling of relations with Ukraine.
Trump's conduct of Ukraine policy has raised questions about his commitment to the country's security as it battles Russia-backed rebels and seeks to recover Crimea, seized by Moscow in 2014.
A senior State Department official said Pompeo will stress in talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and other top officials that as "Ukraine faces its challenges, the United States is with them."
Pompeo also will reaffirm U.S. backing of Zelenskiy's anti-corruption reforms, said the official, who could not be further identified under the rules of a briefing on Pompeo's Jan. 3-7 trip to Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Cyprus.
The Democratic-controlled House of Representatives on Dec. 18 impeached Trump for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, stemming from his bid to push Zelenskiy to open investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden, a leading contender to run against Trump in the 2020 election, and a debunked theory on election interference.
The senior State Department official dodged questions about whether Pompeo would raise with Ukrainian leaders the investigations sought by Trump.