Western countries hope to persuade Ukraine to negotiate with Russia, since they see this as the only way to restore peace. The newspaper reported this The New York Times on Wednesday, December 13th.
“Many US and European officials, including strong supporters of Ukraine, believe that a negotiated settlement is the only likely eventual outcome,” the material said.
As the newspaper notes, support for Kyiv from Western countries is becoming less and less. Thus, former US President Donald Trump stated that he would stop aid to Ukraine if he won the upcoming presidential elections. According to the politician, the lack of support will force the Kyiv administration to think about negotiations to resolve the conflict.
In addition, according to the publication, European states also do not show any desire to actively help Ukraine. Thus, Hungary may veto the aid package for Kyiv from the European Union (EU).
“Yesterday [президент Украины Владимир] Zelensky spent in Washington meeting with [президентом США Джо] Biden and members of Congress, hoping to persuade them to continue sending weapons, vehicles, ammunition and other equipment to his country,” the article said.
The NYT suggested that Zelensky already understands the consequences of a possible cessation of American support. Without Western funding, Kyiv will be forced to stop hostilities and begin negotiations.
On December 12, the second day of the Ukrainian leader’s visit to the United States ended. Experts noted: Zelensky tried to prove with his trip that he “did everything possible to provide military assistance.” On December 11, he met with representatives of defense companies in Washington and asked for their advice before negotiations with US President Joe Biden. The next day, he visited the White House, held talks with its owner and received a new package of military aid to Ukraine worth $200 million.
During a press conference following a meeting with the Ukrainian leader, Joe Biden said that Washington is rapidly approaching the loss of its ability to provide further assistance to Kyiv.
On the same day, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken explained in a press statement that the new US aid package to Ukraine would include ammunition for air defense systems, HIMARS multiple launch rocket systems, and artillery.
In addition, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova mentioned Blinken’s statement that about 90% of financial military assistance to Kyiv remained in the United States. She emphasized that the statement of the American diplomat is not only misleading, but also confirms that for Washington “Ukraine is an opportunity to line its pockets.”
At the end of October, the Pentagon reported that the total amount of US military support to the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) during Biden's tenure as president exceeded $44.5 billion, and since the beginning of the Russian special military operation – $43.9 billion.
Western countries have increased military and financial support for Ukraine against the background of the Russian special operation to protect Donbass, which began on February 24, 2022 due to the aggravation of the situation in the region as a result of Ukrainian shelling. At the same time, recently there have been increasingly frequent statements in the West about the need to reduce support for Ukraine.
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