trump's aid freeze leaves ukraine vulnerable and moscow emboldened
The French newspaper "Le Monde" assesses that the U.S. decision to freeze aid to Ukraine is an "unexpected gift for Moscow," with President Trump's administration resorting to blackmail to pressure Volodymyr Zelensky. "The U.S. president has given the Russian leader an incentive to continue fighting against Ukraine," adds the "Daily Telegraph."
"The American administration has stopped treating Ukraine as an ally and prefers to humiliate and expose them to even greater risks. Donald Trump is determined to achieve a truce by any means," reads "Le Monde."
According to the newspaper, "American officials are looking for pretexts to attack the Ukrainian leader, risking distorting his words as if they were preparing to make him a scapegoat if their diplomatic efforts fail."
The U.S. decision to freeze aid directly targets Zelensky, leaving him "between a rock and a hard place," said expert and former military officer Peer de Jong on French radio station France Info. "Since Friday, there has been a chilling period in U.S.-Ukraine relations," the commentator assessed.
According to the France Info interviewee, it will be challenging to replace the missing aid with supplies from European countries. The U.S. prohibits the supply of American-origin equipment without its consent. De Jong also believes that this decision will hinder diplomatic talks. The expert assessed that "the structure of the war in Ukraine is fundamentally changing."
U.S. president Donald Trump, by withholding military aid to Kyiv, has given Russian leader Vladimir Putin every incentive to continue fighting against Ukraine, according to the British newspaper "Daily Telegraph."
"The consequences of the prolonged withholding of American aid will be catastrophic," assessed the newspaper. It added that if Trump does not resume support for Kyiv in the near future, Ukraine "will ultimately be crushed."
The newspaper reminded readers that when Republicans in the U.S. blocked arms deliveries to Kyiv in 2023, it aided Russia in its offensive in eastern Ukraine, consequently leading to the capture of Avdiivka.
"At that time, European assistance helped fill the gaps. However, it cannot immediately replace the loss of American military support, which both Europe and Washington provided to Ukraine at a rate of around $2.4 billion CAD per month," stressed the "Daily Telegraph."
American aid was supposed to increase drastically
Although Ukraine's defence industry has increased production significantly since the beginning of the war, the line of defence against the Russians can only be temporarily maintained with EU assistance, but ultimately it will be breached, assessed the newspaper.
"In reality, American aid was supposed to drastically increase this year compared to last year, as American manufacturers fulfill contracts for orders signed at the beginning of the war," noted the newspaper.
In its view, what may prevent the American administration from potentially cancelling aid to Ukraine by 2028 are potential penalties that Washington could face for breaking Kyiv's contracts with American arms manufacturers, despite Ukraine having paid for orders from funds provided by the U.S.
Trump may be "using negotiation tactics to achieve a deal he wants," assessed the "Daily Telegraph." "However, in doing so, he has given Putin every incentive to continue fighting, and the heroic Ukrainian army many reasons to ponder," concluded the British newspaper.
