Poland wants to build an alliance with Britain to prevent a sell-out of Ukraine by the West when Donald Trump enters the White House next year.
Donald Tusk, the Polish prime minister, is to hold talks “in the coming days” with Sir Keir Starmer, President Macron of France and Mark Rutte, the secretary-general of Nato, because of concerns about the impact of the US election on the war.
On Saturday Trump’s eldest son, Donald Jr, re-shared a video on Instagram of a forlorn-looking President Zelensky standing alongside Donald Trump, with the caption: “POV: You’re 38 days from losing your allowance.”
Donald Trump Jr taunted Zelensky with a video on social media
EVAN VUCCI/AP
Trump spoke on the phone to President Putin on Thursday and urged him not to escalate the war in Ukraine,The Washington Post reported. Trump had spoken to Zelensky the day before and was said to have told him he would support Kyiv.
Trump has repeatedly questioned the level of American backing for Ukraine’s fight against the Russian invaders and boasted that he would get a peace deal “done in 24 hours”.
Britain, Poland and France are seen as key European players in preventing a new US administration from going behind Kyiv’s back to do a deal with Putin.
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“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 the president of Russia and the new president of the United States,” Tusk said.
He will meet Starmer in Warsaw or London as early as this week and host Macron and Rutte in Poland in an attempt to secure western support for Ukraine via a European alliance that will include the Nordic and Baltic states.
Zelensky with Donald Tusk in July
SERGEI GAPON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Tusk, who dealt with Trump as president of the European Council between 2016 and 2019, once told a meeting of EU leaders that the American was “stupid” and “on a mission against what we stand for” in Europe.
His attempt to build an inner alliance on Ukraine is revealing of Europe’s fears that a peace deal with Putin could, through transfers of territory and enforced neutrality for Kyiv, hand a victory to Russia.
“We will very intensively co-ordinate co-operation with countries that have a very similar view on the geopolitical and transatlantic situation and situation in Ukraine,” he said. “Nobody wants the conflict to escalate. At the same time, nobody wants Ukraine to weaken or even capitulate; this would be a fundamental threat to Poland and Polish interests.”
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During talks with Zelensky in Budapest on Thursday, Starmer pledged Britain’s “unwavering” support “to step up” in defence of Ukraine. After meetings in Hungary, which leads Europe’s pro-Russia camp, the Ukrainian leader attacked unnamed European countries for “strongly” pushing Ukraine to compromise.
Zelensky went to Trump Tower in September hoping to shore up support
UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS OFFICE/ALAMY
European diplomats regard Britain — alongside Poland and France — as critical to holding the line in Europe because of German hesitation on, for example, allowing the Ukrainians to use missiles supplied by the West to hit targets on Russian territory.
Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign affairs chief, landed in Kyiv this weekend in the first significant expression of European support for Ukraine since Trump’s victory. “We will back Ukraine as much as we can,” he said.
Over the weekend, a senior adviser to Trump said Zelensky should give up hope of reclaiming Crimea from Russia. Bryan Lanza, a Republican Party strategist, said Trump would press Ukraine for a “realistic” vision of peace.
Moscow was hit with the biggest drone strike since the invasion of Ukraine, disrupting three of the capital’s airports.
Some 70 drones were shot down overnight on Saturday and Sunday, Russia’s defence ministry said. In response, Russia launched 145 drones over Ukraine, 62 of which were shot down and 76 declared “lost”.