• Disclosure
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
  • CCPA
  • Medical Disclaimer
Friday, February 3, 2023
McLennan County News
  • Home
  • News
  • Business
  • Technology
    • Crytpocurrency
    • Gaming
    • Gadgets
  • Sports
  • Health
  • General
    • Business Services
  • Travel
  • Press Releases
  • Popular
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Business
  • Technology
    • Crytpocurrency
    • Gaming
    • Gadgets
  • Sports
  • Health
  • General
    • Business Services
  • Travel
  • Press Releases
  • Popular
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result
Home News Local News

Harris Trip To Poland Takes A Turn Over Jets For Ukraine – Waco Tribune-Herald

harris-trip-to-poland-takes-a-turn-over-jets-for-ukraine-–-waco-tribune-herald
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

By AAMER MADHANI and LISA MASCARO – Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris’ trip to Warsaw to thank Poland for taking in hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians fleeing Russia’s invasion took an unexpected turn before she even left Washington. She’ll be parachuting into the middle of unexpected diplomatic turbulence over fighter jets.

The Polish government on Tuesday came out with a plan to transfer its Russian-made fighter planes to a U.S. military base in Germany, with the expectation that the planes would then be handed over to Ukrainian pilots trying to fend off Russian forces. In turn, the U.S. would supply Poland with U.S.-made jets with “corresponding capabilities.”

But the Poles didn’t run that idea past the Biden administration before going public with it, and the Pentagon quickly dismissed the idea as “not tenable.”

It was a rare moment of disharmony in what has been a largely united effort by NATO allies to assist Ukraine without getting embroiled in a wider war with Russia.

And it meant Harris was flying into fractious terrain Wednesday as she opens a two-day visit to Poland and Romania and tries to patch things up.

“This fighter jet situation is a messy deal, and Harris will have to go there and smooth things out,” said Daniel Fried, who served as U.S. ambassador Poland for President Bill Clinton and was a senior adviser in the George W. Bush and Obama administrations. “There’s plenty of discussion on the way ahead that needs to be had with the Poles that is better to have in an in-person conversation.”

Biden has applauded Poland and other eastern European countries for stepping up in the midst of what’s become an enormous humanitarian crisis that is only growing. Some 2 million people have fled Ukraine and more than half of the refugees have arrived in Poland.

Biden on Tuesday said he was committed to helping Ukraine’s neighbors bear some of the financial pain of assisting refugees. He previously deployed 4,700 additional U.S. troops to Poland to bolster the defense of the eastern flank NATO ally.

“I’ve made it clear that the United States will share in the responsibility of caring for the refugees so the costs do not fall entirely on the European countries bordering Ukraine,” said Biden. He is looking to Congress to pass a $14 billion aid package to assist Ukraine and its eastern European allies.

Hours after Biden spoke, Poland blindsided the White House with its proposal.

Victoria Nuland, undersecretary of state for political affairs, told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that she saw the Polish government’s announcement as she was driving to Capitol Hill to testify.

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn. called it “curious” for Poland to announce its plan “without alerting us first.”

Secretary of State Antony Blinken did say on Sunday that the U.S. was working with Poland on plans to supply Ukraine with fighter jets, and to “backfill” Poland’s needs. The Polish government, however, made clear that it would not send its fighter jets directly to Ukraine or allow its airports to be used.

And Poland’s idea of transferring its MiGs to the U.S. did not come up during the talks with Blinken, according to a U.S. official familiar with the talks.

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the delicate matter, said White House officials did not think the proposal would easily solve logistical challenges of providing aircraft to Ukraine and questioned the logic of transferring the planes to a major NATO base in Germany only to move them back to eastern Europe.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been pleading for NATO to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine or provide Ukraine with fighter jets. NATO has nixed the no-fly zone idea, saying such a move would lead to the biggest conflict in Europe since World War II and spread further.

Rep. Michael McCaul of Texas, the top Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said late Tuesday he hoped the administration could work out a better agreement with Poland. “I hope they can go back to Poland, renegotiate this and give them assurances that we will deliver” fighter jets, he said.

McCaul also said that more lethal drones could be another option to help provide air power to the Ukrainians

Despite the disconnect over Poland’s proposal, the White House remained intent on dispatching Harris to Poland and Romania, as it looks to spotlight efforts to build a unified front with European neighbors and Western allies.

Harris traveled to the Munich Security Conference last month to rally European allies in the days ahead of the invasion. She also met with Zelenskyy and other European officials.

“The vice president’s trip to Poland and to Europe is part of our effort to show our strong support for our NATO allies and partners, the security assistance they’ve been providing, their role in accepting and welcoming refugees from Ukraine,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said.

Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.

McLennan County News

© 2021 McLennan County News Online

Navigate Site

  • Disclosure
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
  • CCPA
  • Medical Disclaimer

Follow Us

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • DMCA Policy
  • Medical Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclosure
  • CCPA
  • Terms of Use

© 2021 McLennan County News Online

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
Cookie SettingsAccept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT