Here is today's map of the security situation in eastern Ukraine, according to the National Security and Defense Council:
Trump Affirms Commitment To NATO, Security In Europe
U.S. President Donald Trump has said the United States is committed to maintaining strong relations with its NATO partners and to preserving peace in Central Europe. Speaking alongside Polish President Andrzej Duda in Warsaw on July 6, Trump also said Washington is "working with Poland in response to Russia's actions and destabilizing behavior." (Reuters)
Trump Says U.S. Working With Poland In Response To Russia's 'Destabilizing Behavior'
By RFE/RL
U.S. President Donald Trump said in Warsaw on July 6 that the United States is "committed to maintaining peace and security in Central Europe" and is "working with Poland in response to Russia's actions and destabilizing behavior."
Speaking after meeting with Polish President Andrzej Duda, Trump also reaffirmed Washington's commitment to the NATO alliance, saying: "Our strong alliance with NATO and Poland remains critical to deterring conflict and ensuring that war between great powers never again ravages Europe and that the world will be a safer and better place."
In his first trip to Europe in May, Trump shocked many NATO members when he failed to mention Article 5 and instead berated allies for a lack of spending on their defense, claiming the United States shouldered an unfair burden of the costs.
Poland’s proximity to Russia has heightened its concerns about Moscow’s intentions in the region, especially after Russia’s illegal annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea region, its support of separatists in eastern Ukraine, and its alleged interference in elections in the United States and some of its European allies.
Trump's remarks came shortly before he was scheduled to meet leaders of Central and Eastern European states and make a televised speech to the people of Poland.
Later on July 6, Trump was due to travel to Hamburg, Germany, for the Group of 20 summit. He plans to meet on July 7 with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the G20 summit.
In Warsaw, he was to speak to heads of state and government at the Three Seas Initiative Summit in Warsaw, a joint project of Poland and Croatia that was launched in 2016 with the aim of strengthening trade, infrastructure, and cooperation on energy and politics between countries that border the Adriatic Sea, the Baltic Sea, and the Black Sea.
Other countries involved in the initiative include Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Slovenia, and Austria.
The White House said Trump would encourage leaders at the Three Seas summit who are wary about their dependence on Russian energy to take advantage of newly available supplies of U.S. natural gas.
Poland’s populist leaders have expressed support for Trump’s policies and his view of the world, from anti-immigrant themes to an apparent weakening of support for international organizations.
Poland’s ruling Law and Justice party (PiS) has promised to bus in pro-government activists to hear Trump’s televised address.
ALSO READ: Analysis: Despite High Tensions, Trump, Putin Seek To Reestablish A Broken Dialogue
Still, Polish leaders -- like many others across Europe -- were eager to hear the U.S. president renew his country’s commitment to NATO and to the alliance’s Article 5, the provision that states that an attack on one NATO country is an attack on all members of the alliance.