Ukraine 'holds its breath' at the prospect of the US cutting off aid

(Dan Tri) - While facing the scenario that the US will completely cut off military support, Ukraine is trying to find ways to cope with the new reality.

Ukraine faces the prospect of the US completely cutting off aid, a scenario that is very disadvantageous for Kiev (Photo: Reuters).

Ukraine is bracing for a possible withdrawal of US support and is seeking to forge a closer alliance with Europe to counter Russia, following a tense war of words on February 28 between the US and Ukrainian presidents.

The heated argument between Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance on one side and Volodymyr Zelensky on the other has further strained the already tense relationship between the two sides.

Political analyst Volodymyr Fesenko called the heated debate "a step back for both sides" but said "this was bound to happen sooner or later".

"The United States is no longer an ally of Ukraine," Fesenko told AFP , adding that there should be "no illusions" about continued US military support.

Mr Fesenko warned that the consequences could be dire, as US support includes not only the provision of weapons but also military intelligence and communications.

Despite the Oval Office confrontation, Mr Zelensky told Fox News he believed the relationship with Mr Trump could be salvaged and acknowledged that fighting Russia "would be very difficult without US support".

According to official figures, the US has provided 64 billion euros in military aid to Ukraine since Russia launched its special military operation.

The Kiel Institute, a German economic research organization, said that from 2022 to the end of 2024, the US provided a total of 114.2 billion euros in financial, humanitarian and military aid.

The European Union and individual European countries contributed around 132.3 billion euros.

A European military source said earlier that the situation in Ukraine would become “very complicated” around May or June without further support from Washington beyond the commitments made by the previous US administration.

However, a source in the Ukrainian president's office said they were looking forward to "a new alliance with European countries that will protect freedom, democracy and our common values".

The February 28 confrontation was "a reasonable answer to the question of what will happen next and who are our friends and who are our enemies. This was a good thing," the source said.

Ukraine now believes Mr Trump and Mr Vance are “openly siding with Russia”, the source said.

Mr Trump has advocated improving relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and echoed the Kremlin's talking points on Ukraine, upending US policy since 2022.

Ukraine's European allies have come out in support of Mr Zelensky following his confrontation with Mr Trump, ahead of a summit in the UK that the London government said would focus on bolstering support for "a just and lasting peace".

Illya Neskhodovsky, head of the Institute for Economic and Social Transformation, also said Ukraine should rely more on European support but questioned whether European countries “are ready to act quickly enough”.

"Mr. Zelensky was right to defend the dignity of Ukraine, but such public controversy was a mistake," he said.

Many Ukrainians have expressed support for Mr Zelensky, praising him for standing up for the country.

However, opposition MP Oleksiy Goncharenko criticized the President, calling his actions arguing with Mr. Trump in front of the media "completely absurd".

"We've just seen the end of the relationship with Mr Trump right now," he said, warning that a US withdrawal of military support could have "very bad consequences".

However, Ukraine's European Pravda newspaper wrote in a commentary that Washington was "in no hurry to sever ties" despite the February 28 row.

Observers pointed out the relatively "mild" reaction from the White House after the confrontation and noted that there had been no official statement about stopping aid.

"At the moment, the only thing we can say for sure is that the period of unrest began in recent weeks due to the actions of the new US administration, and now it has escalated sharply," the Ukrainian newspaper wrote.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-gioi/ukraine-nin-tho-truoc-vien-canh-my-cat-nguon-vien-tro-20250301205123375.htm