Blinken will head to eastern Europe as concerns mount about Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia

WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to eastern Europe next week as concerns mount about Russia’s advances in Ukraine, potential Russian interference in neighboring Moldova and pro-Moscow legislation being promoted in the former Soviet republic of Georgia, the State Department said Friday.

Blinken will visit the Moldovan capital of Chişinau on Wednesday before attending a NATO foreign ministers meeting in Prague on Thursday and Friday. That meeting will be the military alliance's last major diplomatic get-together before leaders meet at a summit to celebrate NATO's 80th anniversary in Washington in July.

The trip comes just two weeks after Blinken made an unannounced trip to Ukraine to reassure Kyiv of Washington’s support in the face of intensified Russian attacks in its north. There are also signs Russia may be considering new actions in Moldova and is behind anti-Western moves in Georgia that the U.S. believes run counter to Moldovan and Georgian aspirations to integrate with Europe.

At his first stop in Chişinau, Blinken will meet Moldovan President Maia Sandu to reaffirm U.S. backing for Moldova's progress on joining the European Union, the State Department said. The top U.S. diplomat for Europe, James O'Brien, said Blinken would announce a “robust” support package for Moldova, where there are 1,500 Russian troops stationed in the disputed territory of Transnistria.