A few days ago, Zelensky had already promised such a conversation with the former US president. However, Trump took longer to ask. Trump is critical of further US aid to Ukraine and recently publicly criticized Zelensky for not wanting to enter into a deal with Russia.
In Washington, Zelensky first met the Democratic incumbent Joe Biden, who gave the Ukrainian billionaire more billions in aid for his country a few months before he left the White House. US Vice President Kamala Harris, who wants to replace Biden at the head of the government after the election in November, also promised support for Zelensky and indirectly warned of an election victory for her opponent Trump.
Election outcome not without consequences
The outcome of the US election could have huge implications for the course of the war. There are fears in Ukraine that the US could largely be eliminated as the country’s most important supporter in the defense against Russia if Trump wins the presidential election on November 5th against Harris. Trump has signaled that if he wins the election, he will dramatically reduce or even stop support for Kiev.
At a campaign event in the state of North Carolina on Wednesday, Trump made disparaging comments about Zelensky: “We continue to give billions of dollars to a man who refuses to make a deal,” he complained, criticizing the Ukrainian for not making an agreement with Moscow to end the war. “Any deal, even the worst deal, would have been better than what we have now,” Trump said. He also claimed that rebuilding Ukraine was hopeless.
Harris, alluding to Trump’s statements, warned that a decision about ending the war should not be made without Ukraine. But there are “some” in the USA who want that. Their plan is to force Ukraine to give up large parts of its territory, accept the neutral status of its country and forgo the security commitments of other states.
“Proposals for Surrender”
“These proposals are the same as those made by (Russian President Vladimir) Putin, and we should be clear that they are not peace proposals,” Harris said. “Rather, they are proposals for capitulation, which is dangerous and unacceptable.” The USA’s support for Ukraine is not a charitable act, but rather in America’s own security interest.
The Biden-Harris administration has provided massive support to Ukraine in the fight against Russia over the past two and a half years and has provided $58.7 billion (52.5 billion euros) in military aid since the war began in February 2022. Of this, $2.4 billion are funds that Biden released during Zelensky’s visit to Washington. The US President emphasized that he had also ensured that billions in aid already promised would not expire and would be accessed by the end of his term in office in January. According to the White House, this amounts to $5.5 billion.
The new aid package from Washington includes another Patriot anti-aircraft system, long-range glide bombs and drones. The USA also wants to support the training of another 18 Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets. The American-built aircraft are provided by other countries, but the US government is participating in the training program.
Meeting in Germany
Biden also wants to organize further international support for Ukraine. He is traveling to Germany in mid-October and wants to hold a meeting of the so-called Ukraine Contact Group, which is led by the USA, on October 12th at the level of heads of state and government. The White House officially announced this after the meeting between Biden and Zelensky. Zelenskyj should also be there.
The Ukraine contact group includes around 50 countries, and Germany is also involved. The defense ministers of the member countries normally take part in the regular discussions. The USA and Germany are Ukraine’s largest arms suppliers.
Zelenskyj thanked the USA for the new aid package and presented a “victory plan” he had designed during his talks in Washington. According to media reports, it is a paper with four to five points that read less like a plan and more like another of the lists of wishes that Kiev regularly presents to its Western partners – including the supply of specific weapons and an expansion of Western ones Financial aid.
Meanwhile, fighting in eastern Ukraine continues unabated. According to the General Staff in Kyiv, there were 181 battles during the day. The heaviest sections of the front continue to be Pokrovsk and Kurachowe, according to the evening situation report. The Russian military carried out more than 70 attacks in this area alone. Pokrovsk is considered strategically important because from there the area opens to the west – and thus opens the way for the Russians to the neighboring Dnipropetrovsk region.
