U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken arrived in Ukraine’s capital Wednesday for an unannounced visit hours after Russia launched a missile attack on the city, in a trip intended to show confidence in Kyiv’s forces amid a grinding counteroffensive.

Blinken’s trip aimed to assess Ukraine’s 3-month-old counteroffensive and signal continued U.S. support as some Western allies are expressing worries about Ukraine's progress driving out Russian forces after 18 months of war, according to U.S. officials.

After arriving in Kyiv, Blinken laid a wreath at the city's Berkovetske cemetery to commemorate members of the Ukrainian armed forces who lost their lives defending the country.

“We want to make sure that Ukraine has what it needs, not only to succeed in the counteroffensive but has what it needs for the long-term, to make sure that it has a strong deterrent,” Blinken said during the visit. “We’re also determined to continue to work with our partners as they build and rebuild a strong economy, strong democracy.”

In a conference call with reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that U.S. assistance to Ukraine “can’t influence the course of the special military operation.”

Blinken is expected to meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as well as the country's prime minister and foreign minister, to discuss the ongoing counteroffensive and reconstruction efforts.

Also Wednesday, Ukraine’s parliament approved Zelenskyy’s pick for a new defense minister, Crimean Tatar lawmaker Rustem Umerov.

On the train journey to Kyiv, Blinken met with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, also on an official visit, to discuss the war. Blinken thanked her for Denmark's leadership in a coalition training Ukrainian pilots on F-16s and for promising to donate the fighter jets to Ukraine, according to State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller.

Washington officials said there will be discussions of alternative export routes for Ukrainian grain following Russia’s exit from the Black Sea Grain Initiative and its frequent bombardment of port facilities in the Odesa region, from which most grain is transported abroad.