In Poland, Biden says ‘NATO is stronger than it’s ever been’

President Joe Biden on Tuesday kicked off his bilateral meeting with Polish President Andrzej Duda with an eye on reaffirming the strength of the United States’ alliance with European countries.

“I would argue NATO is stronger than it’s ever been,” Biden said during remarks at the start of the meeting in Warsaw.

The president also called the United States’ alliance with Europe the “single most consequential alliance in history,” since “for our ability to operate anywhere else in the world — and our responsibilities extend beyond Europe — we have to have security in Europe.”

Biden’s comments come a day after his surprise visit to Kyiv, Ukraine, where he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy ahead of the one-year anniversary of Russia launching war on the country. The bilateral meeting takes place just hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin suspended Moscow’s participation in the last remaining nuclear arms treaty between Russia and the United States.

Biden on Tuesday emphasized the United States’ continued support for Ukraine and thanked Poland for welcoming millions of Ukrainians into the country.

“As I told President Zelenskyy when we spoke in Kyiv yesterday, I can proudly say that our support for Ukraine remains unwavering,” Biden said.

Biden also said he and Duda “reaffirmed our ironclad commitment to NATO’s collective security, including guaranteeing that the command headquarters for our forces in Europe are going to be in Poland, period.”

Duda, in remarks just before Biden on Tuesday, said the president’s visit to Kyiv is a sign “that a free world had not forgotten them” and that his visit to Warsaw is a sign that Poland is “safe and secure,” despite Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“It sends a very powerful message of responsibility, which the United States of America carries constantly the responsibility for the security of Europe and the world,” Duda said, according to a live translation.

Biden is set to deliver an address in Warsaw later Tuesday morning.