{"id":30369,"date":"2024-04-19T10:59:48","date_gmt":"2024-04-19T10:59:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/04\/19\/fearing-for-ukraine-if-trump-returns-some-in-europe-try-outreach-now\/"},"modified":"2024-04-19T10:59:48","modified_gmt":"2024-04-19T10:59:48","slug":"fearing-for-ukraine-if-trump-returns-some-in-europe-try-outreach-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/04\/19\/fearing-for-ukraine-if-trump-returns-some-in-europe-try-outreach-now\/","title":{"rendered":"Fearing for Ukraine if Trump Returns, Some in Europe Try Outreach Now"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"text-align:center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1050\" height=\"550\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2024\/04\/10\/multimedia\/00lithuania-gwfm\/00lithuania-gwfm-facebookJumbo.jpg?fit=1050,550&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"Fearing for Ukraine if Trump Returns, Some in Europe Try Outreach Now\" title=\"Fearing for Ukraine if Trump Returns, Some in Europe Try Outreach Now\" \/><\/div><p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">As many in Europe worry about the possibility of a second presidency for Donald J. Trump that they fear could bring an end to U.S. support for Ukraine, some of Russia\u2019s most fervent foes are taking a different tack: making nice with the Trump camp.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">To that end, the governing party of Lithuania, a steadfast supporter of Ukraine, last month organized meetings between Ukrainians, Baltic politicians who want increases in military spending to counter Russia, and a group of former Trump administration officials. Also attending were members of pro-Trump groups like the Heritage Foundation, an influential conservative group skeptical about helping Ukraine.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Leading the participants from Ukraine was Oleksandr Merezhko, the chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament\u2019s foreign affairs committee and an ally of President Volodymyr Zelensky. Reaching out to the Trump camp, he said, was simply a recognition of Ukraine\u2019s perilous vulnerability to the shifting sands of American politics.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cWhen we are fighting for our survival, we can\u2019t afford to antagonize either Biden or Trump,\u201d Mr. Merezhko said. \u201cIf we place the wrong bet, we risk losing our country.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump has not detailed his plans for Ukraine if he is re-elected, but many of his supporters are <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/04\/12\/opinion\/jd-vance-ukraine.html?searchResultPosition=1\" title=\"\">strongly opposed<\/a> to helping the country in its battle against Russia.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The outreach effort, according to Mr. Merezhko and other participants, featured discussions about what a second Trump administration could mean for Ukraine and NATO\u2019s future.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">One supporter of Mr. Trump wanted to know why U.S. taxpayers should pay for Ukraine\u2019s war, they said. Those in favor of assistance urged Ukraine and its Baltic backers to frame their pitch for aid against Russia in economic terms that would appeal to Mr. Trump\u2019s transactional approach to foreign policy.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cHelping Ukraine gives jobs to Americans,\u201d Mr. Merezhko said he told experts at the meeting from the Heritage Foundation and the America First Policy Institute, another Trump-aligned think tank in Washington.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingdefense.com\/2023\/10\/most-aid-to-ukraine-is-spent-in-the-us-a-total-shutdown-would-be-irresponsible\/\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">has estimated<\/a> that around 60 percent of $113 billion that Congress has approved to help Ukraine would be spent in the United States on American-made weapons and U.S. military personnel.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Zygimantas Pavilionis, a Lithuanian legislator who organized the meeting, said that instead of confronting Mr. Trump and his base, Ukraine and its supporters should befriend them and explain that \u201cthere is a huge American interest in the fight\u201d against Russia.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Since Mr. Trump won the Iowa caucus in January, however, many European leaders and politicians have struggled to come to terms with the prospects of another Trump presidency.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Alicia Kearns, a Conservative member of the British Parliament and chairwoman of its foreign affairs committee, described as <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/aliciakearns\/status\/1748827631183614405?t=_DPniZvEVZ71JluSumX0bw&amp;s=03\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">\u201ccompletely mind-blowing<\/a>\u201d the possibility that U.S. voters might re-elect a man she labeled a <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/05\/09\/nyregion\/trump-carroll-trial-sexual-abuse-defamation.html?searchResultPosition=2\" title=\"\">sexual abuser<\/a> and an indicted criminal defendant.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">But she, too, has reached out to the Heritage Foundation, joining a group of European legislators for a visit to the organization\u2019s offices in Washington this year. Ms. Kearns did not respond to requests for comment. Earlier this month, Britain\u2019s foreign secretary, David Cameron, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/04\/09\/world\/europe\/david-cameron-trump-ukraine-israel.html?searchResultPosition=1\" title=\"\">met with Mr. Trump<\/a> himself.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">And on Wednesday, President Andrzej Duda of Poland, a robust supporter of Ukraine, met the former president in New York to talk about NATO and Russia\u2019s invasion. Mr. Duda\u2019s chief of staff described their conversation as \u201cexcellent.\u201d Mr. Trump, who during his presidency had very good relations with the right-wing Polish president, said he was \u201cbehind Poland all the way.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In contrast, Mr. Trump\u2019s relations with Mr. Zelensky have been shadowed by the former president\u2019s anger over <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/12\/18\/us\/politics\/trump-impeached.html\" title=\"\">his 2019 impeachment<\/a>, focused on accusations that he used American military aid to pressure Ukraine into investigating Mr. Biden and his son, Hunter.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Alarm over Mr. Trump\u2019s return has been most acute in Eastern European countries that fear his movement\u2019s drift away from the foreign policies of Ronald Reagan. Mr. Reagan is lauded in the formerly communist east for what many see as his role in bringing down the Soviet Union.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Donald Tusk, Poland\u2019s centrist prime minister, who is a bitter political rival of President Duda, voiced angry dismay in February when pro-Trump Republicans in Congress blocked a $60.1 billion aid package for Ukraine. \u201cShame on you,\u201d Mr. Tusk said. \u201cRonald Reagan must be turning in his grave today.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The only leader in the region openly cheering for a Trump victory and an end to support for Ukraine is Viktor Orban, the prime minister of Hungary.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">After meeting the former president in February, Mr. Orban claimed that Mr. Trump told him he \u201cwill not give a penny\u201d to Ukraine should he win in November. But it\u2019s unclear whether Mr. Trump really said this or, as many suspect, Mr. Orban was projecting his own views onto the former president. Mr. Trump\u2019s spokespeople are not saying.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Robert Wilkie, a participant at the Vilnius meetings who served as Mr. Trump\u2019s secretary for veterans affairs, played down Mr. Orban\u2019s comments. \u201cJust look at Trump\u2019s track record,\u201d he said. \u201cUkrainians got weapons when he was president and Putin stayed on his side of the border.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Instead of panicking, Mr. Wilkie added, Ukraine and its supporters \u201cshould make the case that they are on the front line against one of the three powers on the planet that are very open about displacing and, if need be, destroying the United States.\u201d These, he said, are Russia, Iran and China.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Kurt Volker, the United States\u2019 special representative for Ukraine in the Trump presidency, said he, too, doubted Mr. Orban\u2019s account.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cMy advice to all my European friends is that when it comes to the possibility of Trump getting re-elected, don\u2019t make any assumptions about what his policy is going to be,\u201d Mr. Volker said in an interview during a recent swing through Eastern Europe.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Avoiding assumptions about Mr. Trump\u2019s plans for Ukraine, he said, is especially important for those in Europe who, unlike Mr. Orban, are appalled by the prospect of the former president\u2019s returning. \u201cIf you don\u2019t like Trump because of his personality and complain about him publicly, you are just setting the table for disaster,\u201d Mr. Volker added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">A belief that Mr. Trump and his allies can be swayed over Ukraine underpinned the March gathering in Vilnius.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Pavilionis, the organizer, said that while \u201cTrump is a bit crazy and you never know how he will react,\u201d his return to the White House could turn out better for Ukraine than many expect.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Pavilionis said he was astonished during a visit to Washington in January by the isolationist mood in Mr. Trump\u2019s movement. But, he added, as president Mr. Trump \u201cwas much better for our region than Obama,\u201d who rejected sending weapons to Ukraine after Russia annexed Crimea in 2014. Mr. Trump reversed that policy and <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.rferl.org\/a\/javelin-missile-delivery-ukraine-us-confirmed\/29200588.html\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">sent Javelin antitank missiles.<\/a> He also increased <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/01\/12\/world\/europe\/as-trump-reaches-toward-putin-us-troops-arrive-in-poland.html\" title=\"\">the U.S. military presence on NATO\u2019s eastern flank.<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Instead of fretting over Mr. Trump\u2019s campaign promise to end the war in Ukraine \u201cwithin 24 hours,\u201d Mr. Pavilionis said, Ukraine and its allies need to understand that Republicans are far more concerned with containing China and Iran than saving Ukraine or fortifying NATO.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">That, he said, has made it imperative that Ukraine and its European backers build bridges with the Trump camp and present it with a simple argument: \u201cStop Russia and you stop China and Iran,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The same pitch has also been made by NATO\u2019s secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg. In January, he paid a visit to the Heritage Foundation, whose <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/01\/21\/magazine\/heritage-foundation-kevin-roberts.html\" title=\"\">mission, according to its president Kevin. D. Roberts, is \u201cinstitutionalizing Trumpism.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cUkraine must prevail,\u201d <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nato.int\/cps\/en\/natohq\/opinions_222258.htm\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Mr. Stoltenberg said,<\/a> framing the war in the context of China, whose challenge to American power is Mr. Trump\u2019s main foreign policy preoccupation. \u201cChina,\u201d Mr. Stoltenberg said, \u201cis watching closely\u201d what happens in Ukraine.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cChina, Russia, Iran and North Korea are increasingly aligned,\u201d he said, arguing that \u201cwhile China is the most serious long-term challenge, Russia is the most immediate one.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Before Mr. Stoltenberg spoke, however, Mr. Roberts made clear that Ukraine could be a hard sell. \u201cHeritage will not now nor ever support putting a foreign nation\u2019s border ahead of our own,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">But others at Heritage are rooting for Ukraine against Russia, as are some Trump-aligned experts at the America First Policy Institute, like Mr. Wilkie.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cAmerican first does not mean America alone,\u201d Mr. Wilkie said. The Baltic States and other supporters of Ukraine, he added, have nothing to fear from a second Trump presidency.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThe fact is that we had peace in that part of the world for four years but then he left office and everything exploded,\u201d Mr. Wilkie said. \u201cThat is not a coincidence.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/04\/19\/world\/europe\/trump-ukraine-eastern-europe.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As many in Europe worry about the possibility of a second presidency for Donald J. Trump that they fear could bring an end to U.S. support for Ukraine, some of Russia\u2019s most fervent foes are taking a different tack: making nice with the Trump camp. To that end, the governing party of Lithuania, a steadfast [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":30370,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2024\/04\/10\/multimedia\/00lithuania-gwfm\/00lithuania-gwfm-facebookJumbo.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[896,3150,18289,6512,52,1130],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30369"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30369"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30369\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30371,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30369\/revisions\/30371"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30370"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30369"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30369"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30369"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}