The News
US President Joe Biden is racing to push through his foreign policy agenda before Donald Trump takes office in January, with a focus on getting around $6 billion of aid earmarked for Ukraine to Kyiv.
Trump is expected to cut assistance for Ukraine soon after he is inaugurated. Meanwhile, European leaders are meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Budapest on Thursday to discuss boosting the continent’s support for Kyiv’s war effort.
SIGNALS
Trump’s win generates uncertainty for Ukraine
The Biden administration “now has an expiration date, and a to-do list,” wrote Foreign Policy, at the top of which may be unleashing the remaining $5.5 billion it had allocated for Ukrainian aid. Trump vowed to cut assistance to Ukraine as part of his election campaign: “He’s going to halt it early, I’m certain of it,” one former Pentagon official told Politico. With the vote out of the way, Washington may also have a new perspective on the war, Foreign Policy noted, namely, approving the use of long-range missiles into Russia — which Ukraine has urged for months.
Europe reevaluates plans for Ukraine
With a Trump presidency likely to significantly reduce US aid to Ukraine — Washington currently provides more aid than the rest of Europe combined — European leaders will be quietly “grieving the unpredictable Republican’s looming return to the White House,” Politico wrote. The problems they will face are symbolized by Thursday’s group meeting being held in Hungary, hosted by “genuine Trump fan” and Moscow sympathizer Viktor Orbàn, the outlet noted. Some analysts were pessimistic about a united Europe at the summit: “Contrary to claims, Europe is not prepared for the economic impact of higher tariffs, the likely U-turn on Ukraine, and defense spending ultimatums – we expect the EU to divide on similar lines to the US itself,” they told The Guardian.