this sunday, ballooning crisis. >> if any object presents a threat to the safety, security of the american people i will take it down. >> president biden says he doesn't want to damage relations with china after shooting down a chinese spy balloon. >> we're not looking for a new cold war. >> secretary antony blink en meets for the first time since the president canceled his trip to beijing. i'll ask the secretary of state. plus critical moment. >> there is?>; no doubt these a

crimes against humanity. >> the u.s. accuses russia of crimes against humanity as the war approaches the one-year mark. >> i don't think the ukrainians would collapse or fall. i think they'll continue to fight. >> will the u.s. and its allies defeat putin without boots on the ground? we'll get a report from the front lines. >> and primary fight. >> america is not past our prime. it's just that our politicians are past theirs. >> nikki haley is the first republican candidate to challenge donald trump, but she's not ready to criticize her former boss. >> the media wants to be 100% trump or 100% anti-trump. i don't work that way. >> may the best woman win. >> i'll ask one potential candidate who is considering jumping in the race himself. former maryland governor larry hogan.

joining me for insight and analysis are,nbc news white house correspondent peteral exandrina anna nawaz. tom friedman column nest for "the new york times." welcome to sunday. it's "meet the press "qwest. >> from nbc news in washington, the longest running show in television history. this is "meet the press" with chuck todd. good sunday morning. 15 days after the u.s. shot down a chinese spy balloon and after a canceled diplomatic trip to beijing, tensions with china have now escalated again to accusations that china may be supplying russia or may supply russia with lethal aid in its war against ukraine. on thursday the president did try to turn the temperature down a bit with china, acknowledging that the three unidentified objects shot down over lake huron, alaska or canada were not tied to china, but were likely simply research balloons.

>> we seek competition, not conflict with china. we're not looking for a new cold war. i expect to be speaking with president xi, and i hope we have -- we will get to the bottom of this. i make no apologies for taking down that balloon. >> china's top foreign policy official responded on saturday in his visit to these photos taken within the last couple of hours.

the high-stakes, high profile trip in many ways is an american president landing in an active war zone where american troops are not fighting. president biden had been expected to leave washington tonight, monday night, for poland, to thank america's nato allies and reiterate america's enduring commitment to ukraine. i want to get to my colleague, nbc's chief foreign correspondent, richard engel there on the ground in ukraine this morning. richard, this was a daring but certainly a deliberate decision as we approach this critical anniversary. what more can you tell us about what the two leaders, zelenskyy and biden have been able to do together, including the meeting we know took place at the presidential palace? >> reporter: so, security in kyiv is extraordinarily tight. there are no cars allowed on the roads. in some places cell phone service, both for voice and data, has been cut off. this is an extraordinarily

unusual visit. as you said, previous american presidents have visited war zones before, but generally those visits took place on an american military base or a closed environment. now you have president biden visiting an active war zone. in fact, during the visit, air raid sirens could be heard in kyiv, heard all across this country. one of the stops he made was to in front of a cathedral. an extraordinarily rare visit but one that comes at an important time in this conflict. russia has launched a new offensive. it is the united states' way of showing, president biden's way of showing personally that he's committed to this story and he's willing to put himself at physical risk to express solidarity with ukraine one year into this war. >> richard, certainly over the course of the next few hours and days we'll get new details about

how the white house was able to pull this off, to safely get president biden into the center of this war zone right now. as we're hearing from witnesses on the ground there in kyiv, they are saying they have never seen security in the capital city like they are seeing today. as you note, the president was there alongside president zelenskyy. he was at st. michael's church. that's the golden dome you often see in the back drop of the live shot, that you see as this brutal war has gone on, the wall of remembrance across the way there, that president zelenskyy said represents the price of freedom and independence for the people of their country, the price they have paid with so many ukrainians losing their lives. president zelenskyy's wife seen on the left alongside joe biden, who appears to be wearing his blue and yellow tie he has often worn in support of ukraine. i want to get to erin mclaughlin

on the ground for us in kyiv. she was able to witness the president during his events there. erin, you're at the wall of remembrance. what did you see? >> reporter: that's right. just a short while ago we watched from a distance as president biden and president zelenskyy visited golden dome st. michael's cathedral behind me. i watched at a distance as they walked out through the courtyard over that way to the wall of remembrance. the wall of remembrance that has thousands of pictures of fallen ukrainian soldiers. just over that way is a wreath that president biden laid with the flag of the united states. it was a truly historic moment, as this visit took place we did hear an air raid siren. something that has become a common occurrence here in the capital. we noted that both president zelenskyy and president biden

seemed unfazed by the alarm, calmly walking and president biden departed. i witnessed all of this, as i said, from a distance. they cleared this entire area in what was an unprecedented security operation for the capital. there were multiple barriers, dogs, we could see snipers overhead. the entire area was cleared of pedestrians. any journalists standing around were pushed back into a nearby hotel. i was able to witness this from on high, from a window. but even then, ukrainian military inside that hotel were pushing people back away from the windows we were able to look. photography was prohibited. this was a special moment for the ukrainian people. we heard from the deputy foreign minister prior to confirmation of the visit tell ukrainian national television, quote, it is important for us that on the eve of the anniversary of the aggression, we will feel and see

not only verbal support, but also the presence of our important main partners in kyiv. back to you. >> erin, i want to stay with you for a second, if i can really quickly, as you stand there at the wall of remembrance and get a better understanding of just the drama of this day. for hours there's been speculation among some on social media as they saw an american, it appeared, motorcade. now confirmed an american motorcade driving through the streets of kyiv. an air raid siren sounding as the president began this walkabout, as they describe it there. can you just take us into that moment and just sort of what this day has been like for you in anticipation of an arrival of some dignitary, who we now know is president biden. >> reporter: well, it's truly an historic moment. this is the first time in 15 years that a u.s. president has visited the capital kyiv.

during wartime, no less, without the presence of the u.s. military backing him. unprecedented security operation apparent for everyone in the capital to see. the twitter telegram was abuzz with rumors that the president was, in fact, making this visit. and it is an historic day. today marks the ninth anniversary of the killing of the heavenly hundred here in ukraine. that is when more than 100 men and women lost their lives challenging the russian-backed regime triggering in the eyes of many here in ukraine what has been a nine-year ongoing war. their struggle for freedom. to see the president of the united states, to know that he is here in the capital, showing his support in solidarity is extremely important, an extremely important message in

the eyes of the people of ukraine. not only to their country, but also to the entire world. >> erin mclaughlin on the ground for us at the wall of remembrance where president biden just visited within the last half hour or so. i want to get to nbc's chief international correspondent, keir simmons, joining me now from moscow. keir, this arrival in kyiv by president biden comes on what is now noon, midday in kyiv and comes a day before president putin is scheduled to deliver his own key speech on this week, on the one-year anniversary. ahead of what's likely to be a spring offensive, the americans sort of front-loading weapons and other munitions to try to help the ukrainian people in advance of what's anticipated to be a very ugly spring, as the war effort by the russians picks up. >> reporter: that's right, peter. this is going to be a week of symbolism and defiance, both

across the west and also here in russia. actually, russian television has now got a countdown clock for that speech by president putin, clearly building to a climax, if you like, tomorrow. we don't know what president putin is going to say. i will say one thing, peter, another extraordinary aspect of this trip by president biden to ukraine is it does appear the russians had no idea that the white house and the ukrainian president's office managed to pull this off without giving the russians even an inkling this was going to happen, that this was possible. and we can say that in part because, of course, we have seen a lot of reporting that russians often use the app telegram, telegram channels to -- you talk about all aspects of the conflict in ukraine, and this aspect, the idea that president biden would arrive in kyiv has not been seen anywhere. so, i suspect that in the

kremlin, they are getting this news just as we are getting this news. it will, i suspect, infuriate president putin. likely he will describe it as they so often do in russian government, as a provocation. you've heard from him again and again that propaganda that he considers ukraine to be part of russia. so, he will be considering this a trip by the american president to a place that he thinks is his territory, if you like. clearly that, is not the case. as you mention, we will hear from president putin tomorrow. perhaps he will reference this. what we do expect in moscow, peter, in the coming hours is china's most senior diplomat, wang yi to arrive here after that tour of russia -- of europe, after so much rhetoric between the u.s. and china. the u.s. suggesting the chinese are considering arming russia

amid the fighting. so, we'll wait to see who -- who wang yi will meet with, whether he'll meet with president putin. so far, no pictures of his visit here. it's difficult to tell. i think the russians will want it to be seen. it's difficult to tell exactly how far the chinese will want that visit to be seen. but angry words on both sides in the past few days, including from the vice president accuing russia of crimes against humanity. the russians pushing back against that. this week, this anniversary of russia's invasion of ukraine, we are seeing really less diplomacy and more fury. >> keir simmons on the ground in moscow. as you speak about those new warnings, the united states has said to china, basically, that there will be significant consequences if it does pursue the provision of lethal weapons, of lethal force and aid to the

russians. while you were speaking, we got a note, i received this in my inbox from the white house. a statement from president biden on his visit to kyiv, ukraine. i want to read it to you as quickly as i can. i hope in the moments ahead we'll have new pictures on the ground of president biden's arrival there. it reads in part, as the world prepares to mark the one-year anniversary of russia's brutal invasion of ukraine, i in kyiv to our unwavering sovereignty. he adds, when putin launched his invasion one year ago, he thought ukraine was weak and the west was divided. he thought he could outlast us, but he was dead wrong. the president also details some announcements he will be making in the days and hours ahead. he says that he will announce another delivery of critical equipment, including artillery, anti-arm and surveillance radars

to help ukrainian people from aerial bombardment. the united states has already provided more than $30 billion in military aid to ukraine, part of more than $100 billion. $30 billion, i should say. he says that this week the u.s. will also announce additional sanctions against elites and companies trying to evade or backfill russia's war machine. the u.s. has built a coalition of nations from the atlantic to pacific to help defend ukraine with unprecedented military, economic and humanitarian support. i can tell you in my conversations with white house officials over the course of the last several days, we expect to hear from the president on tuesday when he is in poland. he will first be meeting with the polish president, where the president's priorities are three-fold. one, to reaffirm america's support for ukraine. separately to thank the nato allies, including poland.

finally, to send a clear and direct message to the russians that this war must come to an end, and an end that comes soon. i want to get back to erin mclaughlin on the ground, as we have noted right now for us in kyiv. erin, what's the latest that you're seeing there? at this point we're trying to sort out exactly how long the president will be in kyiv today. what other plans are on his schedule? >> reporter: that's right. it's unclear. we are just hearing from president zelenskyy on twitter announcing the visit saying, joseph biden welcome to kyiv. your visit is an extremely important sign of support for all ukrainians. i'm getting more information about that air raid alarm that went off as president biden and president zelenskyy were here at st. michael's cathedral. i watched as they calmly with

the air raid siren, ringing in the back as they walked over to the wall of remembrance and paid tribute to the thousands of ukrainian men that died on the battlefield, starting in 2014, the ukrainian death toll of the conflict. i'm getting more information about that siren, in particular from a kyiv city official telling me that there are two possibilities, two things could have triggered that alarm that we heard. one of them being the possibility there was some sort of aircraft in the area, triggering the air raid siren. the other possibility is that a missile could have been fired but not, he said, in the direction of kyiv, to another region. he ruled out that any sort of missile was fired toward the capital kyiv, this as the president continues his visit. >> erin, thank you. right now we are looking at video we are just now receiving. this is of the president's

arrival at the presidential palace earlier today, wearing his aviators suit and tie, greeted there by volodymyr zelenskyy and his wife there. again, this video taking place over the course of the last several hours. we're getting more details about what happened inside the presidential palace during their visit here that the two men entered the presidential palace. you'll excuse the shaky video. this is raw video that was just shot by the crews on the ground with the president there. the president, as you saw in some pictures we showed earlier, was signing a guest book, reiterating his support to the people of ukraine. taking this photo opportunity alongside elena zelenskyy and president zelenskyy as well. we now know he was joined by some of his top advisers, including the u.s. national security adviser, the president's national security adviser, jake sullivan, who has been one of the most familiar faces that you have seen throughout the course of this

crisis and throughout the course of the president's term, as he has focused on this key foreign policy issue for much of his time in office. even in advance of the invasion, releasing declassified intelligence, worried that russia was preparing to go into ukraine. president biden and zelenskyy delivering some remarks inside where the president went second and saying, among other things, it is critical there not be any doubt, none whatsoever about united states' support. i want to go to nbc's josh lederman, my colleague, who is on the ground in warsaw, poland, where we thought we would first see president biden. that's where he was scheduled to be arriving on tuesday in advance of the historic remarks he was going to be delivering ahead of this anniversary. josh, tell us about the situation there and what you're hearing about some of america's allies with whom he'll be visiting.

>> reporter: yeah, that's right, peter. while in poland president biden will have an opportunity to not only meet with president duda, with the bucharest nine. the threat, the broader threat to european security they feel is posed by russia's aggression and by its invasion of ukraine. that really is the same message that president biden is trying to send with his visit today to kyiv. it's not only about u.s. support with president biden making the case in that meeting with president zelenskyy. he said he wants to say, we are here to stay. the u.s. is not leaving. so s it's partially about that. but there's also a message about why this is important beyond simply ukraine. that this is a fight that the president feels that if it's not fought in ukraine, if we don't help the ukrainians to defend themselves, that this is a fight the rest of europe is going to have to face itself. that it threatens america's own

national security and that continued u.s. assistance with not only weapons but with diplomatic and economic support is not charity. it's not helping another country simply for the sake of helping them. but that this is vital for america's own national security interest. that is the way that the president is hoping he will be able to maintain the unity, not only amongst the allies but, frankly, amongst american public and republicans, some of who have balked at continued u.s. assistance to ukraine. there are some in the new gop-controlled house who want to immediately cut off support to ukraine. over the weekend we saw some senior republican leaders say, no, as a party we are standing firm with ukraine. that is what president biden hopes will really continue to be the case. if he is able to make that argument in kyiv, standing in the ukrainian capital, where rewind to a year ago, president putin was predicting he was

going to be able to sweep through the country in a matter of days, overtake the capital, which was an early target for the capital. here we are a year later, president biden is able to go, stand calmly in the presidential palace, next to volodymyr zelenskyy, and have this display of unity amongst ukraine and its allies. president biden hoping to continue to make that case as he then travels from ukraine to here in poland, where we expect him to spend the next several days, that that kind of support is going to continue. in fact, needs to be even more robust as these allies discuss what next to help to help ukraine. whether to provide long-range weapons, whether they'll provide the fighter jets ukraine has been asking. it's a balancing act as the western allies give ukraine what ukraine feels they need without doing anything they worry would escalate this into a broader

conflict between nato and a nuclear-armed russia. clearly there's a sense as we near this one-year anniversary of the war that supports the ukraine needs only to increase, not to decrease. president biden making it very clear that from his point of view, the u.s. is not going anywhere. peter? >> josh lederman on the ground in warsaw, poland. for those just waking, president biden is in kyiv, ukraine. he's already visited, as you see there, the presidential palace. seen signing a guest book. visiting with president zelenskyy as well. upon his arrival where he was greeted by the president and his wife. we're now getting some of the details of their conversation. president zelenskyy saying that president biden, thank you for coming. president biden looking at zelenskyy and saying, most importantly, how are the children? it's amazing to see you.

when greeted by the president, his purpose of the visit was to convey to zelenskyy that the u.s. was, quote, here to stay, as he added, we're not leaving. richard engel is on the ground for us in ukraine right now. richard, this raises a lot of questions. i think a lot of people with support for this war beginning to support, according to recent polls, what the endgame is. the president says he'll be here for as long as it takes. the question for a lot of americans and lawmakers, what the it is there. is it a timetable? is it about territory? is it about spending? what does winning look like and will the situation be any different one year from now, ahead of what we anticipate will be a very bloody spring offensive? >> reporter: peter, the russian forces have already launched their spring offensive. they launched it early. both sides, according to sources

i'm speaking to, believe there was an advantage to be gained by striking first. russia wanted to launch its offensive now, even though it's clearly still freezing cold here and not ideal conditions for a spring offensive, but wanted to launch it early before new weapons, new tanks, new pieces of artillery, new air defense systems cannot only be brought into this country, but also integrated into the other weapons systems ukraine already has. so far the russian offensive has not been terribly successful. russia is losing a lot of troops. it has resorted to using mercenaries, sending them in waves. according to ukrainian officials, i've spoken to them directly, with people involved in following the mercenaries, tens of thousands it of mercenaries and russian troops have been killed just in the last several weeks, trying to push the front line forward. so, russia is trying to gain

territory but so far it's struggling in a way russia has been struggle from the very beginning to make progress in this war. ukraine wants to keep moving. they want to take advantage of russia's inability to advance. they want to take advantage of the high number of casualties and they certainly want to take advantage of the political support they have from president biden and other western leaders right now. so they believe this is a moment to launch their own offensive, potentially knocking a very serious blow to russian forces. what does victory look like for ukraine? pushing russian troops out of their country. if vladimir putin is allowed to take a piece of this country and allowed to keep it, ukrainians are convinced and american officials are also convinced, at the pentagon and the white house, that if putin is allowed to take a piece of ukraine, he won't stop there. he'll keep going, devour more of

this country and potentially expand the conflict deeper into europe. many here in ukraine will say, we've seen this before. we saw what happened when strong men are not challenged. we saw it with world war ii, that unless you draw a line in the sand and fight for it, that dictators when unchecked will continue their aggression. i think this is an opportunity for president biden to make that message as he made several times. this is not just a war between russia and ukraine, largely centered out here in the freezing east. that this is a a question of sovereignty, it is world order, and the world should not sit by and allow russia, which launched this attack a year ago, an unprovoked aggression against ukraine, which hadn't done anything to start this war, and that it should not be left without a firm and long term

response. >> as you've been speaking, we have seen the president with his host, volodymyr zelenskyy, in the presidential palace where he was greeting the ukrainian delegation. before that, the american delegation that traveled with president biden into ukraine, including national security adviser, jake sullivan, as well as u.s. ambassador to ukraine. as we anticipate, we'll hear remarks from president biden delivered a short time ago. i want to ask you about what is this growing pressure campaign, including that from a bipartisan group of lawmakers who are urging president biden to supply f-16s to ukraine. i had the opportunity to ask john kirby, one of the national security council spokes people on friday about abrams tanks expected to arrive in the next several months. that's months away. there's now a call for aircraft to arrive as well. is there any likelihood that happens, if not from the u.s.

but other alice? some promising they will come. >> reporter: it's certainly a possibility. i think it's more likely now than it was several weeks ago. we just saw this munich security conference, which happens every year. this year it was focused on ukraine. there was quite a bit of solidarity. i think in the early stages of this war there was not, but i think now we are starting to see the western allies get together and talk more seriously about providing weapons in large quantities. not just dolling it out piece by piece. >> richard, sorry to interrupt you. we are watching president zelenskyy seated by president biden delivering remarks. let's take a listen. >> and what they have to do to stop the war, to have success in this war, to make ukraine stronger and throughout this year. >> thank you for having me.

i thought it was important that the president of the united states be here today. as the president remember -- was going to attack, i'm certain of it. i thought it was critical that there not be any doubt, none whatsoever, about u.s. support to ukraine in their war against a brutal attack by russia. back in kyiv, i was telling the president, one of my staff members on the flight from washington into poland asked me how many times i've been to kyiv. i had to stop and think. it's my eighth trip. and much has changed. much of it bad since the invasion, but also people have stepped up in a way that few

people ever have in an offense. and have apparently embraced the notion of democracy. no longer discussion about whether or not certain privileged people have control. and, you know, i'm very -- goodwill from members of congress, when you spoke to them last. and for all the disagreement we have in our congress on some issues, but there is significant agreement on the support to ukraine. this is so much larger than just ukraine. it's about freedom of democracy in europe. it's about freedom of democracy at large. all the american people, i know so many have been kept ukrainian

people, particularly the women and children, in their prayers. they see what's happening. they can't fathom the idea of the shelling. it's barbaric. i'm here to show our unwavering support for the nation's independence, their sovereignty and the territorial integrity. today i hope we're going to have a chance to discuss how the united states and our allies, by keeping constant contact with our partners, can most effectively support you and your cause, president. i look forward to discussing all this and addressing the world with you afterwards. again, the admiration for the people of ukraine, ordinary, hard-working citizens, who were never trained to be military,

went and stepped up. it's beyond. and the whole world is looking. >> thank you very much. >> we're walking out. press, we're walking out. >> those were the remarks of president biden and president zelenskyy a short time ago at the presidential palace in kyiv. the leaders not taking any questions from reporters there. we're learning new information about how this trip came to be. the president was scheduled to depart at 7:00 p.m. eastern time tonight, monday night, to go to poland. instead we're now learning from those reporters who were traveling with him that he left from joint base andrew, just outside of washington, d.c., at 4:15 in the morning on sunday morning. here are more of the remarks of the two leaders. i want to be clear. are we going to listen to these, gentlemen?

while we listen to president zelenskyy, clearly speaking in ukrainian, i want to get to richard engel on the ground. the president, as we saw in his remarks, making it very clear that his visit was to make it clear that there should not be any doubt, none whatsoever, about u.s. support for ukraine in the war. does this change the equation in any form, some of the recent headlines obviously have really seemed to escalate the situation. most notably, antony blinken speaking on "meet the press" on this channel, on this network, within the last 24 hours, basically warning that china was considering providing lethal aid to russia right now, which would potentially only expand this situation. richard? >> reporter: so, there does seem to be a sense that the ukrainians have a bit of

momentum with them. that they have the wind at their backs. even though it is the russians who have launched this second offensive. the second offensive that the russians have launched is going poorly. the big question out there is will china now step in, which has backed putin politically, but not much so military. >> president zelenskyy, we now have the translation. take a listen. >> translator: remember, the tension, the attitude of president biden and united states to every single ukrainian, we remain constantly in communication with the president of the united states over the course of this large-scale war. and this is the first visit over 15 years. and this is really the most important visit of the whole history of ukraine/u.s. relationship. this is the visit in this most difficult period for ukraine, which ukraine is fighting for

liberties of the world, the results we have already achieved. what sort of historic achievements we might gain all together with whole world, with the united states, with europe, and today our negotiations were very fruitful. they were very important and crucial and as has become traditional in relationship between our countries, i would like to extend words of gratitude personally to mr. biden, his team, and congress, and to all the u.s. people. i thank you for these level of ukraine/u.s. cooperation. and this week we'll be marking one year of our fight against the russian aggression. it's very symbolic that we fully

defy our resilience with two meetings. my visit in december and the president of the united states of america to kyiv today. the results of these visits will surely be seen and will surely have a reflection on the battlefield and in liberating our territories. the decision of the united states on abrams tanks for ukraine has already presented a foundation for establishing a tank coalition. and it's of historic importance in many other aspects, specifically an air defense, in patriots for the defense of our cities. now, this is a very fundamental and crucial reinforcement of our capacities. we've also talked about long-range weapons and the weapons that may still be supplied to ukraine, even though it wasn't supplied before. i know, mr. president, that there will be a very significant

package of security support to ukraine. currently it will serve as a clear signal that russia's attempts of relaunch will have no chance, and we together will defend our cities and citizens from russia's tour will have more impetus towards our victory. and today we have yet again underlined we have our common vision with regards to the perspectives of this war. we have coordinated the follow-on pressure on the terror state. we are working hard on the reinforcement of sanctions both bilaterally and in the form of g7, which is very important. we have common vision on the contents, as many aspects of our peace formula, because it's security as well as the tasks to restore the u.n. charter to its

full capacity and to defend the international rule-based order. that's common. a joint task for all the countries that are interested in the international security. the rebuilding and the recovery of justice is also very important for all those who was affected by the russian terror, by the russian war, and the aggressor has to take responsibility for the aggression and reimburse all the damages. i thank the president of the united states for supporting our work on restoring the justice. more specifically in the work of our -- all of our institutions in that area. and we believe there's no alternatives to the establishment of the special tribute. this is the position of the -- of ukraine, and we shall support this position, and i would really like united states to be engaged in the implementation of

our peace formula because its implementation would mean a reinforcement of global stability and the predictability of international relations. we have some achievements in this area. already this week in new york, together with the united states of america, and over 60 other countries will be submitting for the consideration of the grand general assembly of the draft resolution on supporting peace in ukraine and on the 249 of february, we believe that the approval of the resolution would be very significant evidence to the fact that the terrorist state would never break a civilized country. and i think we are -- we are also opening a special tablet dedicated to president biden. the first call on the night of the 24th of february took place

with the united states. since that time, we have conversations and it was very significant attention to our fight, to the protection of ukraine's democracy, besides the personal contribution of president biden and the liberty and democracy in the world. this will -- will be remembered internally. and ukraine is grateful to you, mr. president, to all the u.s. citizens, to all those who cherish freedom just as we cherish them. glory to our warriors, glory to our allies, and glory to ukraine. >> for the united states of america. >> thank you very much, mr. president. it was one year ago this week that we spoke on the television, mr. president. it was very late at night in washington, very early in the morning here in kyiv. russian planes are in the air and tanks were rolling across

your border. you told me that you could hear the explosions in the background. i'll never forget that. and the world was about to change. i remember it vividly, because i asked you, i asked you next, i asked you, what is there, mr. president, what can i do for you? how can i be of help? i don't know if you remember what you said to me, but you said, and i quote, gather the leaders of the world, ask them to support ukraine. gather the leaders of the world and ask them to support ukraine. . and you said that you didn't know when we'd be able to speak again. that dark night, one year ago, the world was literally at the

time bracing for the fall of kyiv. seems like a lot longer ago than a year. but think back to that year. perhaps even the end of ukraine. you know, one year later, kyiv stands and ukraine stands, democracy stands. america stands with you and the world stands with you. kyiv has captured a part of my heart, i must say. i've come here six times as vice president. once as president. and in 2009 as vice president when i first came here. then back in 2014, i came three times in the aftermath of the revolution of dignity. and i again came in 2015 to address the work of building a strong democracy.

and i came in 2017 just before i left office as vice president. i knew i'd be back, but i wanted to be sure. even though the elections were over, barack and i were out of office, i decided to make one more trip before the next president was sworn in, to kyiv. so, president zelenskyy, you deeply honor me here in kyiv with you today. to meet with your military, your intelligence folks, your diplomatic teams. community leaders who have stepped up and helped their country in their hour of need. it's astounding who stood up. everybody. everybody. women, young children, tried to

do something -- just trying to do something. pulling people out of apartments and being shelled, literally against war crimes. it's astounding. and the whole world, the whole world sees it. and looks at it. this is the largest land war in europe in three-quarters of a century. and you're succeeding. against all and every expectation except your own. we have every confidence you're going to continue to prevail. you know, from the moment i first received intelligence report in the fall about a year ago, we were focused on determining, how do we rally the rest of the world? how do i help you with the promise you asked me to make to rally the world?

well, how do you succeed? how do you ever get the world to respond? to a prosperous economy, a confident democracy, a secure and independence state, when united americans of all political backgrounds decided that they would step up. american people know it matters, unchecked aggression is a threat to all of us. we built a coalition of nations from the atlantic to the pacific. nato in the atlantic, japan in the pacific. i mean, across the world, the number of nations, over 50, helped ukraine defend itself, unprecedented military and

humanitarian support. we united leading economies of the world to impose unprecedented costs that are squeezing russia's economic life lines. together we have committed nearly 700 tanks and thousands of armored vehicles. 1,000 artillery systems. more than 2 million rounds have artillery ammunition. more than 50 advanced launch rocket systems, anti-ship and air defense systems. all to defend ukraine. and that doesn't count the other $500 million we're announcing with you today and tomorrow. that's going to be coming your way. and that's just the united states in this piece. and just today, that announcement includes artillery ammunition for himars and howitzers, javelins, radars will

protect ukrainian people from aerial bombardments. later this week we will announce additional sanctions against elites and companies that are trying to evade sanctions and backfill russia's war machine. and thanks to a bipartisan support in congress, this week we're delivering billions in direct budgetary support, billions in direct budgetary support, which the government can put to use immediately and help provide for basic services of citizens. the cost that ukraine has had to bear has been extraordinarily high. and the sacrifices have been far too great. have been far too great. we mourn alongside the families of those who have been lost to the brutal and unjust war. we know there will be very difficult days and weeks and years ahead, but russia's aim

was to wipe ukraine off the map. putin's war of conquest is failing. russia's military's lost half its territory it once occupied. young, talented russians are fleeing by the tens of thousands, noting to come back to russia. not just from the military, fleeing from russia itself. because they see no future in their country. russia's economy is now a backwater, isolated and struggling. putin thought ukraine was weak and the west was divided. as you know, mr. president, i said to you in the beginning, he's counting on us not sticking together. he was counting on the inability to keep nato united. counting on us to not to bring

in others on the side of ukraine. he thought he could outlast us. i don't think he's thinking that right now. god knows when he's thinking. i don't think he's thinking that. he's just plain wrong. plain wrong. one year later, the evidence is right here in this room. we stand here together. mr. president, i'm delighted to be able to repay your visit to our country. in washington, not long ago, you told us, you told the congress, quote, we have no fear, nor should anyone in the world have it, end of quote. you and all ukrainians, mr. president, remind the world every single day what the meaning of the word courage is.

from all sectors of your economy. all walks -- all life. it's astounding. astounding. you remind us that freedom is priceless. it's worth fighting for, as long as it takes, and that's how long we're going to be with you, mr. president, for as long as it takes. >> well done. >> thank you. [ applause ] >> president biden and president zelenskyy of ukraine at the presidential palace a short time ago, their remarks there. the president recalling the fears that kyiv, that ukraine would fall into russia's hands. a year ago when the invasion began. the president saying, one year later, kyiv stands, ukraine stands, democracy stands. and he said, the americans stand

with you and the world stands with you. richard engel is on the ground in ukraine this morning. richard, just to punctuate the daring trip of an american president into an active war zone where missiles have been landing regularly, including in the capital city kyiv. >> reporter: so, this is an extraordinary visit. other world leaders have come to kyiv over the last several months. but not an american president. not the president who is personally so committed to this war. the united states is, by far, the main supplier of weapons and financial support to ukraine. so, this is different than to have the british prime minister or the italian leadership coming. this is a significant step. american presidents have gone to war zones in the past, but generally when they went to iraq or afghanistan, they were going

to places that had a large u.s. military presence often just staying on military bases. that didn't happen today. instead, president biden came into kyiv amid great secrecy, tremendous amount of security, telephones disrupted, traffic not ail allowed on the streets because of the dangerous kind of visit. but he wanted to do it to show support, show support at this critical time. a year ago in kyiv, the city was bracing for a possible fall. i was in kyiv in those early days of the war. it did seem like, perhaps, russian troops were going to drive their way into the city and topple the government and take the country. but instead, we don't have vladimir putin in kyiv right now. that could have happened had the russians taken over the country. you could have had the russian president there declaring victory, standing like a conquering general in the

capital. instead, we have russia launching a new offensive, trying to do what it failed to do a year ago, and with the u.s. president in kyiv expressing admiration for the ukrainian solidarity and their courage and expressing continued american support. >> richard engel on the ground for us in ukraine. richard, we hope you'll continue to be safe. we're always grateful for your views from the ground. that's going to conclude this nbc news special report. we will have much more coming up this morning on want to cut defense. nikki haley is solid on the culture stuff and she's solid on society and good on economics and she's good on foreign policy. i want to see that fight happen inside the party. >> i think the question, tom, if the fight happened in 16 and trump won? >> just in one of the things in reading up on nikki haley -- >> no, absolutely. >> she was against trump

originally and said we shouldn't have a president that can't denounce the kkk. then she was for trump and then after january 6th she was against trump and then she was for trump and then she was against trump in these coming out interviews. she describes herself as tough as nails, but in her opening bid dan from "the washington post" today, she decried the 1619 project in "the new york times" being over the top on racism. she talked about the charleston and the black church, and she didn't mention that she was the one that took down the confederate flag. >> that did strike me as tough as nails. >> to my day job, what's striking to me is there's a lot of questions about joe biden as we talk about 2024 right now. i was in north carolina a few weeks ago and even democrats who love what the party has done, every one of them brought up his

age unsolicited. the concern about his age right now. he checked off a couple of key boxes and he had a good physical and his doctor says he's vigorous and healthy and the democrats say he performed, well, as well. two-thirds of americans are very uncomfortable with him running again, we are told by those close to the president that he would follow the obama model in terms of the announcement. obama waited 13 months after the announcement to start campaigning. he has the benefits of incumbency and he can make an announcement in april and wait for the trail. >> the strangest thing about the democratic side the rank and file voters clearly would like to see some other candidates, but washington, no. the democrat elite is, like, squashing it. >> this is the gap, right, between what we're seeing with the electorate and where the candidates are showing up with the field and yes, you're right. even among democratic voters they have reservations about supporting mr. biden for another

campaign, but this generational issue is one we hear again and again, and tim scott and we heard it from governor huckabee sanders in her response to the state of the union address. these are republicans saying let's move on, new generation of leadership. we'll see. >> it is sitting there for them and the turn the page argument and it worked for barack obama and we'll see if it works. on this podcast, i spoke about nikki haley's campaign launch and wait until you find out what stuff's in the air all of the time and after the broadcast we'll get more from tom friedman. subscribe to the chuck toddcast by scanning the qr code. we'll be back next week because if it's understand, it's "meet the press."