Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said in an interview Wednesday that he doesn't necessarily think U.S. support for Ukraine's war effort will diminish if former President Donald Trump is elected president in 2024. Mr. Kleba explained: “Trump is someone you can work with. He just needs to know how to do it.”
Cleva I got it. To NV Media in Ukraine:
Who sold the first American weapons to Ukraine? President Trump [sent us] Javelin. Who started the program to deliver the first Navy ships, the Island and Mark VI boats, free of charge to Ukraine? Mr. Trump. Who fought the Nord Stream 2 project and imposed sanctions on the famous but forgotten Fortuna ship that built this pipeline? It was Trump.
“That's why Mr. Trump is someone you can work with. You just need to know how to work with him. If he gets elected and wins, we're going to be very good at everything.” “I'm going to be a very different person than President Joe Biden, who I'm grateful for,” he said.
As Kuleba pointed out, President Trump approved the sale of Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine in 2017.trump state department cleared In 2019, it sold defensive weapons to Ukraine for $39 million, including about 150 spears.
Ukrainian military personnel take delivery of an American man-held anti-tank missile FGM-148 Javelin, which was provided to Ukraine by the United States for military support, at Kyiv's Boryspil Airport on February 11, 2022. (Sergei Supinsky/AFP, (via Getty Images)
America started send Island-class Coast Guard patrol vessel to Ukraine in 2019. In July 2020, the Trump administration approved the sale of 16 Mark VI fast patrol vessels to Ukraine, six of which were funded with U.S. security assistance funds. Mark VI is New design However, the U.S. Navy is already transitioning to the more advanced Mark VII, which can operate at high speeds in shallow water.
Trump administration takes office in January 2021 imposed sanctions on a russian ship Fortuna Its controlling entity under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).
playing cards signed CAATSA was enacted in August 2017 and imposed new sanctions on Iran, North Korea, and Russia. He felt the bill was “deeply flawed” because it unnecessarily restricted “the negotiating ability of the executive branch,” but he said it was intended for “national unity” and to address “bad behavior” by those targeted. The bill was signed into law to punish and deter them. System.
of Fortuna It was sanctioned for participating in the “construction of Russia's energy export pipelines”, in particular the construction of the Nord Stream 2 line.
The Trump State Department explained:
Completion of Nord Stream 2 would give Russia the means to completely bypass Ukraine, deprive it of vital revenue, and expose it to further Russian aggressive actions, while diverting natural resources from political pressure and It provides a means to be used as a means of adversely affecting Western Europe.
President Joe Biden's administration lifted up Sanctions related to the Nord Stream 2 project were imposed in May 2021, just before Russian strongman President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy immediately condemned the move, saying he was “unpleased” by the Biden administration and predicted grave danger for his country.
Related — Schiff, Putin: 'Strengthens own position geopolitically and strategically' on Nord Stream pipeline
In June 2021, Zelenskiy told Axios, a Washington, D.C., media outlet, “Nord Stream 2 still seems like that… We understand that this is a weapon, a real weapon, and that We're talking openly about it,” he said.
“It is not very understandable, but it is completely unexpected, that this is a weapon in the hands of the Russian Federation, and that the bullets for this weapon could be provided by such a great country as the United States,” Zelenskiy continued. Ta. “Because it is a model civilization, a model democracy in the world.”
In an interview with Nevada media, Kuleba denied speculation that Trump would seek a deal with Putin to end the war in Ukraine, but that any deal would necessarily include some concessions to Russia. It will be.
playing cards Said At a town hall in May 2023, he said he would meet with both Putin and Zelensky and resolve the Ukraine conflict within “24 hours” after returning to the White House.
“I don't think in terms of winning or losing,” Trump said when asked if he hoped Ukraine would win the war.
Cleva Said “Despite all the articles in various magazines,” it would be “impossible” for Trump to make a “big deal” with Putin.
“There are a lot of 'what if's,' but Ukraine should not be afraid of anything. Not elections, not current or future politicians,” he said.
Compared to President Biden's apparent determination to indefinitely fund the Ukrainian resistance movement, President Trump's actions regarding the Russia-Ukraine war are somewhat difficult to predict.A significant portion of the Republican Party has grown. skeptical Particularly in the midst of the devastation of the US government debt and the crisis at the US southern border, this unlimited war spending needs to be drastically reduced.
Mr. Kuleba has become displeased in recent days, criticizing Ukraine's war effort, which has stalled despite massive funding and equipment from the United States and Europe.
At a conference in Spain in September, Mr. Kleba said: Said that “Criticizing the slow pace of the counterattack is tantamount to spitting in the faces of Ukrainian soldiers who sacrifice their lives every day to move forward and liberate Ukrainian soil one after another.”
“I advise all critics to shut up and come to Ukraine and try to free one square centimeter themselves,” he said flatly.
December, Kleba Said “Europe does not know how to wage war,” he said in an interview with Ukrainian media.
“Unfortunately, our friends have spent too much time debating when and how to increase production of arms and ammunition,” he said, adding that Russia's more energetic He lamented efficient military production.
“Europe clearly has an advantage in technology. The problem and the challenge they face is to scale up the production of that technology,” he said, adding that they will be able to expand production of that technology at a pace comparable to Russia's state-run arms industry. He advocated an integrated U.S.-Russian military production system that could supply Ukraine.
