White House: ‘No Plans’ to Send Joe Biden to Kyiv Despite His Willingness to Go

The White House on Thursday said there were no plans to send President Joe Biden to Ukraine, despite the president again expressing his willingness to go.

Biden was asked by reporters Thursday during a trip to North Carolina if he was prepared to travel to Ukraine to signal his support for the country during Russia’s invasion.

“Are you ready to go?” he asked reporters.

When reporters replied by asking the president if he was ready to go to Ukraine, Biden replied, “Yeah.”

But White House official Fox News reporter Jacqui Heinrich said that there were “no plans” to send Biden to Kyiv, Ukraine “at this time.”

Politico reported Wednesday the United States was considering sending a top official to Ukraine to symbolize their support for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

When asked about the report, Biden said he and his staff were “making that decision now.”

Biden has previously expressed his willingness to travel to Ukraine but complained that “they” (presumably his staff and security detail) will not allow him to do so.

“Quite frankly, part of my disappointment is that I can’t see it firsthand like I have in other places,” Biden said during his visit to Poland in March. “They will not let me, understandably; I guess it would cross the border — and take a look at what’s going on in Ukraine.”