On Thursday, January 30, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is scheduled to arrive in Kyiv for a two-day visit that is part of his broader trip to the UK, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan. Pompeo is the highest-level US official to travel to Ukraine since the impeachment process has started.
In Kyiv, the US top diplomat is going to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine's Minister of Foreign Affairs Vadym Prystaiko, Minister of Defence Andriy Zagorodniuk and some civil society representatives. The leaders are supposed to discuss European security, especially in light of the recent Middle East tensions, which resulted in Iran shooting down a Ukrainian passenger plane and killing all people on board. It is highly likely that Russia will also be a matter of discussion.
Interestingly, last week, a scandal broke out with Mr. Pompeo berating an NPR journalist Mary Louise Kelly after her questions regarding the dismissal of Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch. Following the interview, Pompeo asked Kelly if she believed Americans truly cared about Ukraine (using expletives in his speech), shouted at her and then challenged to indicate Ukraine on an empty map.
While Secretary Pompeo's actions caused a wave of backlash from both civil society and officials, Donald Trump praised his Secretary of State's handling of the NPR host. "I think you did a good job on her, actually," the president said.