I’ve never said this before, and I am unlikely to say it again, but Donald Trump kind of has a point.
After all, even broken clocks are correct twice a day. And in this case, Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky were somewhat justified in saying in their July 25 phone conversation that European countries — especially Germany and France — should be doing more to defend Ukraine.
“I will say that we do a lot for Ukraine… Much more than the European countries are doing and they should be helping you more than they are,” Trump reportedly said to Zelensky, according to a Sept. 25 memo from the White House which reveals the dialogue of a July 25 phone conversation between the two leaders.
“Yes you are·absolutely right,” said Zelensky in response, before airing his frustrations with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron.
“They are not working as much as they should work for Ukraine. It turns out that… the European Union should be our biggest partner but technically the United States is a much bigger partner than the European Union,” Zelensky added.
Zelensky is likely red-faced from the release of this memo. But actually it is Germany and France that should be embarrassed about the level of defense assistance support they provide to Ukraine, a European nation under attack by Russia.
Despite Trump’s dark motivations in arguing his point, or inexcusably using it to justify withholding vital aid, there are a number of legitimate grievances with Berlin and Paris here in Kyiv among those who believe the European heavyweights can and should do more to help.
Plenty of Ukrainians feel that Germany and France cannot be relied upon, that they are too entwined with Russia to properly back Ukraine in its time of need, especially when it comes to its defense.
It seems extremely unlikely that Trump was actually taking a moral stand or trying to motivate Europe when he temporarily withheld $390 million in military assistance financing for Ukraine.
Instead, it increasingly looks like withholding the aid, much of which ends up going back into the U.S. defense sector anyway, was an attempt to pressure Zelensky’s administration to move against his likely 2020 presidential election opponent, former U. S. Vice President Joe Biden.
This could be the final straw that gets Trump impeached, but it’s also becoming a crisis for Ukraine.
It is unforgivable for a U.S. president to use this vital aid as an apparent quid pro quo bargaining chip when Ukraine’s very existence, and the lives of its citizens, are at stake. More than 13,000 people have already been killed in Russia’s war against Ukraine and Western support in withstanding this aggression is absolutely vital.
But beyond the obvious and immediate scandal here, it is also concerning that Ukraine is so dependent on hundreds of millions in military aid from the States, and is so threatened when that is suspended.
It is wrong that Europe’s most powerful nations — with the exception of the United Kingdom — do not support Ukraine militarily and are not invested in bolstering the nation’s defense capacity. Trump and Zelensky are correct in pointing that out for criticism.
When Russian proxy forces and soldiers first invaded Crimea and attacked the Donbas, it fell to the Baltic states to send much-needed ammunition — which was airlifted by the British Royal Air Force, according to a former high-ranking U.K. defense official — to desperate and unequipped Ukrainian soldiers.
France and Germany sat on their hands. They have had years to stand up to Russia and help prevent Ukrainian deaths but have routinely failed to do so. Instead, they’ve counted on U.S. military muscle to do all the heavy lifting. Britain, Canada, Poland and Lithuania are the only other countries contributing to Ukraine’s defense, but this is dwarfed by the American support.
Still, putting military matters aside, Trump and Zelensky are wrong to say that the European Union and the countries of Europe are failing Ukraine and not doing enough period. In most other respects, the EU is easily Ukraine’s biggest supporter and most important partner.
Organizations like the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Investment Bank (EIB) stand out as Ukraine’s most significant foreign investors. The EU has led the way in strengthening Ukrainian civil society, its justice system and paying for its governmental reforms, with some $15 billion in loans and grants mobilized since 2014.
More broadly, the association agreement, free trade deal and visa free regime between Ukraine and the EU has benefited the nation immensely, beginning a transformation of its society and economy, where the value can already be seen.
But the elephant in the room is still Russia’s overt and covert aggression against Ukraine and Europe’s failure to mount a convincing, robust response.
Left unchecked and largely unchallenged, the Kremlin’s hybrid aggression has extended its influence deep into Ukraine and beyond, lest we forget that parts of Moldova and Georgia are still occupied, Syria is being bombed relentlessly and Russian operatives are active throughout Europe.
And yet, American military support is relied upon to aid Ukrainian soldiers in defending what is essentially a European war front, where an active and bloody conflict is being fought, a war that has displaced some 1.5 million people.
It is embarrassing that Europe has been unable to mobilize directly in defending European territory and its own so-called values, and that countries such as Germany, France, Italy and Spain (major EU and NATO member states) have not contributed a cent to military technical support, training or equipment for Ukraine.
In Europe, to their credit, Britain, Poland and Lithuania have stepped up to equip and train Ukrainian soldiers defending their land, but the U.S. contribution, an estimated $1.5 billion since 2014, dwarfs the tens of millions provided by those countries.
This is a European war but Germany and France will not do more. That much is clear, sadly.
In fact, their dedication to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline with Russia is actively harmful to Ukraine. This pipeline will deprive Ukraine of billions in yearly transit fees and undermine its energy security. It’s also bad for Europe, and obviously brings Kremlin political influence with it.
Also of concern are the strengthening business ties between Germany and Russia, and the ever-friendly rhetoric towards the Kremlin from Berlin. Germany has also just shamefully admitted it will recognize Russian passports that are illegally issued to residents of the occupied Ukrainian Donbas.
Worrisome too are French attempts to ignore Ukraine and normalize relations with Russia, as well as talk from Macron of a Europe that extends as far as Vladivostok. The French president, it seems, believes he can improve relations with the bear that already has Europe’s head firmly in its mouth.
At the same time, the Italian government has proven itself time and again to be a vocal and business-obsessed supporter of Moscow, its claim to Crimea and the lifting of vital EU sanctions on the Kremlin.
With Brexit looming, Ukraine should be concerned about the emergence of a German, French and Italian trinity within the EU that will above all else pursue its strategic and commercial interests with Russia, content with peace at any price in the war-torn Donbas and occupied Crimea.
As for Ukrainian soldiers and volunteers who stand guard at the edge of European freedom, on that mine-strewn and mortar-bombarded contact line, they will have to ready themselves to continue their vigil mostly alone.
