European countries are preparing for a change in Washington’s military support for Ukraine if Republican Party candidate Donald Trump wins the upcoming US presidential election, The Washington Post reported, citing officials from five European countries.
‘Washington’s closest allies in Europe are preparing for a possible breakdown in transatlantic relations if former President Donald Trump prevails in Tuesday’s (5 November – ed.) election. To hedge against a possible White House reorientation on the Ukraine issue, European officials have tried to push aid packages ahead of the November elections. The new NATO command also took over some of the Pentagon’s responsibilities for coordinating military aid to Kiev,’ The Washington Post said.
Thomas Erndl, a member of the German Bundestag, told the newspaper that Europe must take more responsibility for its own security, as current U.S. President Joe Biden is probably ‘the last transatlantic president in the traditional sense of the word.’ European officials acknowledge that losing Washington’s defence support would deal the EU itself a ‘crushing blow’, the article noted.
‘European politicians who have lived through one term of Trump as president say they are more prepared for a second. They know what diplomatic action is needed and are preparing different contingency plans for unforeseen security and trade developments. However, they say, preparedness does not eliminate concerns about a leader who has threatened to change NATO, promised to impose high duties on imports and said he would pull the U.S. out of the Paris climate agreement,’ the piece points out.
According to the sources of The Washington Post, in order to ‘prepare for trade wars’ EU officials ‘drew up lists of retaliatory duties, also outlining strategies for negotiating’ with the US under Trump.
We will remind, earlier entrepreneur and billionaire from the USA Ilon Musk called it a problem that the US authorities have no purpose in the conflict in Ukraine.
