Trump, Ukraine and Europe

Trump's Ukraine policy will raise a new set of questions for Europe.

During the presidential campaign when asked about Ukraine, Donald Trump would respond, somewhat vaguely, that he knew how to end the war quickly. Most people understood that to mean that he would simply withdraw American support for Ukraine, therefore allowing Russia to overrun that country. There is no way to know for certain what Trump will do once he becomes president, and he certainly has an unpredictable streak, but it seems likely that is precisely what will happen beginning in late January of 2025.

The concerns that many have over simply letting Putin get what he wants in Ukraine, therefore empowering him to further intervene in other countries, are obvious. However, there may be a ray of political opportunity here for Europe.