EU leaders discuss ways to support Ukraine without Trump – media

At a meeting in Budapest, European Union leaders discussed continuing Ukraine’s military aid in the event that Donald Trump, the winner of the US presidential election, decides to cut off U.S. support. Bloomberg learned this from sources familiar with the discussions in Budapest.

Specifically, the European leaders deliberated on whether the EU would be prepared to supply the required financial resources for military assistance to Ukraine. The biggest concern was that Trump would try to shift the financial burden to Europe.

According to one of the sources, nothing in the initial discussions suggests a radical shift in the US’s stance toward supporting Ukraine in its defense war against Russia.

Tusk to held talks with Macron, Rutte, and Starmer

Other reports also indicate the EU’s efforts to continue aiding Ukraine. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk will soon meet with the French president, British prime minister, NATO secretary general, and leaders of the Nordic and Baltic countries to discuss transatlantic cooperation and the war in Ukraine. Mr. Tusk stated this on Saturday, Reuters reports.

The future of aid to Ukraine is one of the main issues facing the European Union after Donald Trump’s victory in the US election. Trump has criticized the level of US support for Ukraine’s fight against the Russian invasion, and prior to the election, he made a promise to end the conflict before taking office, but he did not specify how this would be achieved.

“There is no doubt that this new political landscape is a serious challenge for everyone, especially in the context of a possible end to the Russian-Ukrainian war as a result of an agreement between, for example, the Russian president and the new US president,” Tusk said.

“In the coming days, we will coordinate very intensively with countries that have a very similar view of the geopolitical and transatlantic situation and the situation in Ukraine,” he added.

Tusk said that French President Emmanuel Macron and NATO chief Mark Rutte will soon visit Warsaw, and he will meet with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer either in Warsaw or London. And Tusk will meet with Nordic and Baltic leaders in Stockholm.

“Everything, of course, will be in the context of the new challenges facing our homeland, the entire region, the European Union, and the Western community,” Tusk said.

He restated his remarks from before the US election: “Regardless of the result, Europe must assume more responsibility for its own security, and Ukraine alone cannot determine its future.”

Zelenskyy calls on EU leaders

On Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on European leaders to focus on maintaining arms supplies and not undermine Ukraine’s position by talking about a ceasefire or concessions to Vladimir Putin.

“If we are talking about the possibility of peace today, it is because Ukrainians have shown extraordinary courage and because the West has supported Ukraine. However, we will see how the scenario develops in the coming weeks,” Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni told reporters as she arrived for the second day of the European leaders’ meeting on Friday.

Some European officials said that the real problem is not so much the funding itself but rather the available military resources, which come mainly from the United States.

Some officials argued that Europe should wait until after Trump’s inauguration in January to learn about his intentions toward Ukraine. Others said that leaders do not have that luxury and that the European Commission should develop proposals on how the EU would respond to a cutoff of US aid.

Trump has already begun his first round of phone calls with European leaders.

At least one of these conversations included a discussion of how Trump might approach talks with Putin, according to one senior official briefed on the call.

Trump allegedly made it clear that he realizes he cannot simply push Ukraine to make concessions to Putin without giving anything in return, the unnamed official said to the media, speaking on condition of anonymity. 

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, known for pro-Russian statements and talks with Putin during Russia’s war, claimed in a radio interview on Friday that Europe cannot finance a “lost war” on its own and said the United States would withdraw its support.