U.S. President Donald Trump. File photo
| Photo Credit: REUTERS
Donald Trump said he would meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday (September 27, 2024) having criticised him on the U.S. campaign trail and expressed doubts about Ukraine’s ability to win its war with Russia.
Mr. Trump, the Republican candidate in the Nov. 5 presidential election, made the announcement on Thursday, just hours after Democratic President Joe Biden announced more than $8 billion in new military aid for the U.S. ally.
Mr. Zelenskyy has long sought a meeting with Mr. Trump. The two men spoke by phone in July but have not met in person since Mr. Trump’s term as president ended in 2021.
During a press conference on Thursday, Mr. Trump repeated his claims that he could rapidly negotiate a deal between Russia and Ukraine if he defeats Biden’s vice president, Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate in the race for the White House.
“President Zelenskky has asked to meet with me, and I will be meeting with him tomorrow morning at around 9:45 in Trump Tower” in New York, Mr. Trump said.
Asked by a reporter if Ukraine might have to give up any of its territory to reach a peace deal with Moscow – a non-starter for Kyiv – Trump did not rule it out.
“We’ll see what happens,” he said.
Shortly before Mr. Trump’s comments, Harris pledged support for Ukraine and – in a veiled reference to Mr. Trump – said those who would have Ukraine swap land for peace with Russia were supporting “proposals of surrender.”
Ms. Harris was speaking alongside Zelenskky at the White House, a day after Mr. Trump assailed him for not making a deal with Russia that Mr. Trump said could have ended the war and shortly after the White House announcement of the new aid package.
It was Ms. Harris’ seventh meeting with Mr. Zelenskky and the third this year.
Zelenskyy sought meeting with Trump
Earlier in the week, Mr. Trump looked poised to reject Zelenskky’s meeting request.
The Ukrainian leader had said before departing for New York for the annual U.N. General Assembly that he hoped to present his “victory plan” to win the war with Russia to Ms. Harris, Mr. Trump and Mr. Biden.
But he upset Mr. Trump’s campaign after visiting a munitions factory over the weekend in the battleground state of Pennsylvania with that state’s governor, Josh Shapiro, a Democrat and a Ms. Harris ally.
Mr. Trump has stood by his criticisms of Zelenskky on the campaign trail. He said on Monday that Mr. Zelenskyy wanted Harris to win the election, and on Wednesday he called the Eastern European nation “dead” and “demolished.”
The U.S aid announced by Biden includes the first shipment of a precision-guided glide bomb called the Joint Standoff Weapon, with a range of up to 130 km.
The medium-range missile gives Ukraine a major upgrade to the weapons it is using to strike Russian forces, allowing the Ukrainians to do it at safer distances.
The bulk of the new aid, $5.5 billion, is to be allocated before Monday’s end of the U.S. fiscal year, when the funding authority is set to expire. Another $2.4 billion is under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which allows the administration to buy weapons for Ukraine from companies rather than pull them from U.S. stocks.
Mr. Biden also said he would order the Pentagon to expand training of Ukrainian F-16 pilots, including by supporting the training of an additional 18 pilots next year.
Mr. Zelenskyy thanked Mr.Biden and the U.S. Congress for the new military aid package, saying Ukraine would use it “in the most efficient and transparent manner”. “I am grateful to the United States for providing the items that are most critical to protecting our people,” Mr. Zelenskyy said on X, mentioning a Patriot battery, drones and long-range missiles.
Published – September 27, 2024 10:12 am IST
