U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Kiev on Tuesday to show support and solidarity with former opposition leaders prepping for a military standoff with Russia. Kerry pledged $1 billion in U.S. loan guarantees to Ukraine’s anti-Russian leadership, and had talks with Ukrainian officials to prepare the nation for elections and transition. 

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Kerry said that the money was for economic and technical assistance for the new leadership, and that there would not be any money designated for military backing as of yet. U.S. officials are scrambling to gain support for economic sanctions against Russia, which are said to happen in “days, not weeks.” 

Secretary Kerry said he was not planning to travel to Crimea, where Moscow has as many as 16,000 troops on the ground. Kerry’s visit is a symbolic boost of support to new Ukrainian leadership, and comes as the U.S. and other Western states attempt to give Russia an ultimatum in advance of further escalation. 

SEE ALSO: Russia: Ukraine Wanted Crimea Invasion

The $1 billion loan offer is currently awaiting approval in Congress. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Edward R. Royce, from California, said of the situation, “We must place crippling sanctions on Russian high-ranking officials, state owned banks and commercial enterprises, and key individuals behind the Russian intervention. Only by forcing Putin to reverse aggression and by supporting Ukraine in this time of national crisis can we hope to restore peace in the region.”

Read more on the agreement at the Washington Post. 

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