BRUSSELS: Russian President Vladimir Putin is not going to make peace in Ukraine earlier than he is aware of the outcomes of the November 2024 US election, a senior US State Division official mentioned on Tuesday (Nov 28), amid issues {that a} potential victory for former President Donald Trump might upend Western assist for Kyiv.
Trump, who’s searching for reelection in 2024 and is the main candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, has been sharply essential of US assist for Kyiv.
A senior official briefing reporters after a gathering of NATO overseas ministers in Brussels mentioned the alliance reiterated its assist for Ukraine realizing {that a} peace settlement within the subsequent 12 months is unlikely.
“My expectation is that Putin will not make a peace or a significant peace earlier than he sees the results of our election,” mentioned the official, who spoke on situation of anonymity to debate the outcomes of the assembly.
Requested whether or not they had been expressing a private opinion or the view of the US authorities, the official mentioned it was a “extensively shared premise.”
“That was the context wherein the allies all expressed sturdy assist for Ukraine”, within the NATO assembly on Tuesday, the official added, with out mentioning Trump by title or explicitly saying how the election outcome would have an effect on assist for Ukraine.
US President Joe Biden, a Democrat, has given huge navy support and different assist to Kyiv since Russia’s February 2022 full-scale invasion, however extra funding for Ukraine is being held up by the Republican-controlled Home of Representatives.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy earlier this month invited Trump, who has mentioned he might finish the battle in 24 hours if reelected, to Ukraine to see the dimensions of the battle for himself.
