Ukraine could replace US troops stationed in Europe – Zelensky aide
Ukraine could offer to partially replace American troops stationed in Europe, as well as providing exclusive access to rare minerals in the country, in a bid to secure the support of US President-elect Donald Trump, a top aide to Vladimir Zelensky has said.
In an interview with Italian daily La Repubblica on Thursday, Mikhail Podoliak was asked for his take on how US-Ukraine relations would change under Trump, and what impact his return to the White House could have on Zelensky’s so-called ‘victory plan’.
The roadmap was presented by Zelensky last month, and demands an immediate invitation for Ukraine to join NATO. It was reportedly met with a cold reception in the West. Moscow has dismissed the plan as a non-starter for talks and a recipe for a direct conflict between Russia and the US-led military bloc.
According to Podoliak, however, some of its elements could pique Trump’s interest. “We bring pragmatism to the negotiating table. We have developed military expertise and can offer Trump a partial replacement of American contingents in various regions, first of all in Europe. We also have deposits of rare minerals, such as lithium and titanium, which we can exploit together,” he said.
He also sought to dispel widespread concerns that Trump’s victory was bad news for Ukraine. The Republican has consistently criticized unconditional US aid to the embattled country, and vowed to bring a swift end to the conflict. In order to do this, he may reportedly force Kiev to suspend its NATO membership ambitions and freeze hostilities along the current front line.
The president-elect, Podoliak argued, “is a politician who aims to be number one,” adding that the reported plans are “all based on giving something to Russia, but they are suggestions from [Russian President Vladimir] Putin.”
“If Trump went along him, he would become number two. And I don’t think he can accept that,” Podoliak suggested, ruling out any idea that a peace agreement must involve some kind of concessions from Ukraine.
The Financial Times reported earlier this week that Ukraine was planning to entice Trump into continuing US aid by portraying it as a way of undermining Beijing, with the idea being that Ukraine would create a system in which “anybody but China” would have access to its natural resources.
