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OnPolitics: The President will visit Poland after meeting of NATO leaders

Chelsey Cox   | Paste BN

Hello, OnPolitics readers!

The Russian Foreign Ministry said Monday it had summoned U.S. Ambassador John Sullivan to the ministry in Moscow in response to President Joe Biden's recent remarks describing Russian President Vladimir Putin as a "war criminal."

The ministry warned Sullivan that Biden had strained U.S.-Russia relations, as Russian forces continued relentless missile strikes on Mariupol, a port city in southeastern Ukraine.

As the war reaches its 26th day, roughly 25% of Ukrainians have been displaced from their homes. The number accounts for more than 10 million people who have either been uprooted within Ukraine or fled the country as refugees. 

The population of Ukraine has already been declining for years, dropping from over 50 million in the 1990s to 43 million in 2022.

It's Chelsey with today's top stories out of Washington.

Biden will visit Poland after NATO meeting

To demonstrate support for the eastern flank of NATO, Biden will travel Friday to Poland after a meeting of NATO leaders Thursday to coordinate a response to the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

The president will meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda in Warsaw to discuss the Western response to the humanitarian and human rights crisis from the war, according to the White House. 

Poland has proposed creating a peacekeeping force, but officials say they do not know if NATO is willing to back such an action, which might provoke Russia.

Poland has taken in more than a million of the 3 million Ukrainians who have been displaced since Russia's invasion began in February.

More on the NATO meeting: Alliance countries are expected to discuss military enhancements, humanitarian and financial support for Ukraine and more economic sanctions for Putin and Russia. But officials expressed caution against aggressive moves that might widen the conflict.

U.S.-China relations tested: Biden warned Chinese President Xi Jinping of the "consequences if China provides material support to Russia" during its war with Ukraine. Analysts say Beijing's decision whether to support Russia will be an inflection point in relations between the U.S. and China.

Real quick: stories you'll want to read

Immigration advocates accuse Biden of TPS double standard

The Department of Homeland Security quickly granted "temporary protected status" for Ukrainian refugees. Afghans fleeing the country after the U.S. evacuated Afghanistan in August have only just been granted protection from deportation by the Biden administration with an announcement last Wednesday.

Immigration advocates point out a double standard in the time it took the U.S. government to guarantee sanctuary for Ukrainians vs. Afghans.

Afghanistan is not the only example. Advocates and Democratic lawmakers criticize the Biden administration for quickly aiding Ukrainians while seemingly delaying help for majority Black and brown countries, such as Cameroon in Africa, where armed conflict has increased in past years.

“It is critical that TPS is not politicized to preference some countries over others,” Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., said in a statement Wednesday, where he added that he is “troubled” that TPS has not been granted for Cameroon and Ethiopia. 

DHS has granted TPS – a status designated by the agency to non-Americans whose home countries are experiencing armed conflict, environmental disaster or other extraordinary conditions that would prevent citizens from returning safely – to several nations, including Ukraine, Afghanistan, Venezuela and Haiti. The designation for some countries ends later this year, and the administration has not indicated whether will extend the TPS designation to any of these countries.

There's a new coronavirus variant sweeping across the U.S. Here's what to know about BA.2. — Chelsey

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