Donald Trump has said he will end American involvement in the war in Ukraine if he secures a return to the White House, in comments that will prompt deep concern in Kyiv.
“[President] Biden and Kamala [Harris] got us into this war in Ukraine, and now they can’t get us out. They can’t get us out,” Trump said in a campaign speech in Georgia. “I think that we’re stuck in that war unless I’m president. I’ll get it done. I’ll get it negotiated, I’ll get out. We gotta get out. Biden says, ‘We will not leave until we win.’ What happens if they win?”
Although the United States has not sent troops to Ukraine, it has supplied the vast majority of weapons to Kyiv as it fights off Russia’s invasion. President Zelensky said in April that Ukraine would have “no chance of winning” without US military assistance.
Kyiv wants to target Russia military bases with western missiles such as Storm Shadows to inflict crippling blows on Putin’s war machine. The Kremlin has warned on numerous occasions that growing western involvement in the war in Ukraine could provoke a nuclear response.
Trump also accused Zelensky of wanting Harris to win the US presidency. “I think Zelensky is the greatest salesman in history. Every time he comes into the country, he walks away with $60 billion,” he told a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
Washington approved a $61 billion package of US military aid for Ukraine in April after months of opposition by some Republicans. “He wants [Harris] to win this election so badly, but I would do differently — I will work out peace,” Trump added.
