United States President-elect Donald Trump’s return to the White House is being closely watched in Europe for how it might affect Russia’s war in Ukraine.
This is because the war in Ukraine highlights a stark foreign policy divide between President Joe Biden and Trump.
Under Biden, the US government has committed some $174bn in aid to Ukraine as it battles invading Russian forces, with the US president lobbying other NATO allies to keep up support as well.
Trump, however, has repeatedly slammed aid to Ukraine and said he would end its war with Russia “in a day.” To do so, he has suggested Ukraine may have to cede territory in a peace deal, something the Ukrainians reject and Biden has never suggested.
As such, it isn’t surprising that Ukrainians and European NATO members have been scrambling to reach out to the President-elect, fearing waning support from the US under his administration.
German government spokesman, Steffen Hebestreit, has revealed that in their first call since the US election, United States President-elect Donald Trump and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz agreed to work for “a return to peace in Europe.”
Also, an American news agency reported that Trump had spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin and pressed him not to escalate the war in Ukraine.
During the call from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, Trump reminded Putin of Washington’s considerable military presence in Europe, the news agency reported, citing an unnamed person familiar with the matter.
It added that Trump expressed interest in follow-up conversations on “the resolution of Ukraine’s war soon.”
According to one former US official who was familiar with the call and spoke to the Washington Post, Trump likely does not want to begin his second presidential term with an escalation in the Ukraine war, “giving him incentive to want to keep the war from worsening.”
In a statement to the outlet, Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung said, “President Trump won a historic election decisively and leaders from around the world know America will return to prominence on the world stage.”
“That is why leaders have begun the process of developing stronger relationships with the 45th and 47th president because he represents global peace and stability.”
Steven Cheung
Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke with Trump in a call last week.
Biden To Convince Trump Not To Halt U.S Support For Ukraine
According to U.S National Security Adviser, Jake Sullivan, Biden will try to convince President-elect Donald Trump not to pull support from Ukraine when he takes office.
He said that Biden will make his pitch to Trump, when the two meet on Wednesday, November 13, 2024, for a White House transition meeting.
“President Biden will have the opportunity over the next 70 days to make the case to the Congress and to the incoming administration that the United States should not walk away from Ukraine, that walking away from Ukraine means more instability in Europe.
“Biden will make the case that we do need ongoing resources for Ukraine beyond the end of his term.”
Jake Sullivan
While Trump has not gone into detail on how he plans to end the 2.5-year war, his incoming Vice President JD Vance has offered a rough vision.
Sullivan said that one of the Biden administration’s main goals in its remaining months will be “to put Ukraine in the strongest possible position on the battlefield so that it is ultimately in the strongest possible position at the negotiating table.”
As part of this effort, he stated, the White House is rushing aid to Ukraine, with plans to spend its remaining $6bn of Ukraine funding before Trump’s presidential inauguration in January.
Sullivan said that Trump and Biden will have the opportunity to review Washington’s stance on Ukraine, along with other foreign policy issues, and discuss how Trump plans to tackle them during their meeting on Wednesday.
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