Former Vice President Mike Pence made an unannounced go to to Ukraine on Thursday, a detour from the presidential marketing campaign path that was supposed to focus on his unwavering assist for the nation because it battles Russia and to distinction it with the views of two key Republican rivals: Donald J. Trump and Ron DeSantis.

Both Mr. Trump, the previous president, and Mr. DeSantis, the Florida governor, have criticized U.S. involvement within the protection of Ukraine. The United States has offered greater than $40 billion in army and humanitarian support.

During his 12-hour keep, with an NBC News crew accompanying him, Mr. Pence met with Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, and toured a mass burial web site, inserting flowers at a memorial, in keeping with an adviser.

For greater than 16 months, Ukraine has been combating to repel the Russian invasion, in a struggle that has claimed the lives of a whole bunch of hundreds of civilians and troopers.

“Look, the war here in Ukraine is not our war, but freedom is our fight,” Mr. Pence instructed NBC News. He is the primary Republican candidate to go to Ukraine through the 2024 marketing campaign. President Biden was in Kyiv in February.

In his nightly deal with to his nation, Mr. Zelensky thanked Mr. Pence for his assist and stated that American assist for Ukraine was very important.

Mr. Pence added to NBC News, “I think we’re advancing not only the interests of freedom, but let me be clear, my other message is we’re advancing our national interest.”

The present of solidarity by Mr. Pence, who was Mr. Trump’s vice chairman, contrasted sharply with the G.O.P.’s high tier of presidential candidates.

During a CNN town hall in May, Mr. Trump, the Republican front-runner, refused to say whether or not he wished Ukraine to win the struggle.

He additionally wouldn’t name President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia a struggle legal, saying that doing so would make it tougher to finish the hostilities. Mr. Trump did say Mr. Putin had “made a bad mistake” by invading Ukraine.

Mr. DeSantis, a former House member, has aligned himself extra intently with Mr. Trump on U.S. support for Ukraine.

In a press release to Fox News in March earlier than formally getting into the race, Mr. DeSantis stated that defending Ukraine’s borders was not a vital U.S. interest and that policymakers ought to as a substitute focus consideration at house. He was responding to a questionnaire from Tucker Carlson, the conservative commentator who was later fired by the community.

At that point, Mr. DeSantis was criticized by some hawks in the G.O.P. for describing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as a “territorial dispute.” In an try and make clear his remarks, he later called Mr. Putin a “war criminal” who ought to be “held accountable.”

Jonathan Swan, Maggie Haberman and James C. McKinley Jr. contributed reporting.