Former President Donald Trump met with Polish President Andrzej Duda in Manhattan on Wednesday, highlighting his close personal relationship with the leader of the NATO member state, who has called for more international aid to war-torn Ukraine. did.
“He’s doing a great job,” Trump said of Duda as he entered the lobby of Trump Tower, calling him “my friend.”
“We had a great four years together. It was a great four years,” added the 77-year-old would-be Republican presidential nominee.
To which Duda replied, “That’s right.”
“We may have to do it again,” the former president said.
“We’ve had a very good personal relationship. There’s never been a problem, not even a small problem, we agree on a lot of things,” Trump said of his bond with the former president. Ta.
A crowd of about 150 people formed in front of a police barricade set up near the former commander-in-chief’s former headquarters, hoping to catch a glimpse of President Trump and President Duda shaking hands, with some Trump supporters saying, Shouts of things like “America!” and “Save us!” could be heard. America,” and “Stop the War.”
Mr. Duda has strongly advocated support for Ukraine following the Russian invasion in February 2022.
The topic of war in the former Soviet state was expected to come up in the meeting between Trump and Duda, but details of the meeting were not immediately available.
Mr. Duda and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk both feared that Russian President Vladimir Putin, if successful in Ukraine, would turn his sights on North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) members, and threatened to send billions to Kiev. urged Congress to authorize additional military aid.
President Trump, meanwhile, is skeptical of continued U.S. aid to the war, recently arguing that Congress should not approve additional aid to Ukraine “unless it’s in the form of a loan.”
The Washington Post also reported earlier this month that President Trump was developing a plan for Ukraine to relinquish Crimea and the Donbass region to Russia in exchange for a ceasefire.
The Trump campaign vehemently denied this report.
Mr. Duda and Mr. Trump have something in common in advocating for NATO members to spend more on defense.
Last month, Poland’s president called on all NATO members to allocate at least 3% of their GDP to defense spending, citing “growing threats.”
President Trump similarly asserted that the United States “pays for the majority of NATO” and called on America’s 31 NATO allies to “pay up.”
He sparked outrage last month when he suggested that if re-elected, he would “encourage” Russia to “do whatever it wants” to North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) countries that don’t pay enough for their defense. .
The House is scheduled to vote on a $95 billion package on Saturday that includes $60.84 billion in aid to Ukraine.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) said Wednesday that the spending bill is about the same size as the relief package passed by the Senate in February, but includes “more funding for support and stronger strategies and accountability.” He said that
“Eighty percent of the spending on Ukraine is replenishing American arms and inventories,” the House speaker told CNN.
The bill has the support of President Biden.
Additional reporting by Desheania Andrews
