Trump's midterm election calculations are complicating US policy on Ukraine – Reuters
The upcoming US midterm elections in November may help explain changes in US President Donald Trump's approach to Russia's war against Ukraine and his displays of support for Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
Source: Reuters
Details: Reuters said Trump has shifted his position quite openly on a major political issue over the past month. After criticising Putin, he has begun to show support for him.
Quote from Reuters: "What explains the turnabout? The November midterms may offer a clue."
Details: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, whom Reuters once described as "once Washington's most celebrated wartime ally", has found himself caught in the crossfire of US election politics. Trump is putting increasing pressure on him to reach a peace deal with Putin.
"With US voters increasingly frustrated by high energy prices and the cost of living, Trump has turned renewed attention to the war in Ukraine in recent days, arguing that a negotiated settlement there could help ease economic pressures at home, even though US consumers would be unlikely to feel the effects of any peace deal ahead of the 3 November vote," Reuters said.
Trump has said the war may be closer to ending than ever before and that he wants the death and destruction to stop.
However, Reuters suggested that he may also be calculating that settling the four-year conflict could ease pressure on the US economy, voters' wallets and his own political prospects. Russia is a major oil supplier and has not ruled out a broad economic deal with Washington.
Trump has struck a deal with Putin in the past few weeks, temporarily easing some US sanctions on Russian diesel fuel and lifting others in exchange for Moscow supplying more diesel to global markets.
He is considering meeting Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping next month without Zelenskyy's participation.
Meanwhile, Kyiv has complained that the US satellite system operated by SpaceX installed on high-speed drones stopped working, limiting Ukraine's ability to strike Russian targets and defend itself against attacks.
Quote from Reuters: "The moves are a shift from Trump's earlier criticisms of Putin and a return to more prickly relations between the US and Ukrainian leaders. Ukraine and several European allies have expressed alarm at an apparent pivot by Trump."
Details: Trump has accused Ukraine of driving up global diesel prices through its attacks on Russian oil refineries. He has also suggested that Ukraine needs a new leader.
"Russia, frankly, has been fine on Ukraine," he said at the White House on 19 October.
Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff later called Putin a "humanitarian" for releasing a retired American teacher who had been detained in Russia since 2022.
Quote from Reuters: "The Ukrainian attacks have contributed to higher diesel prices, although market analysts attribute most of the increase to disruptions in fuel shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. That's a consequence of a different war: the US-led one with Iran."
"Trump wouldn't be the first politician to lay blame for inflation abroad. His Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, pointed to Putin after Russia's invasion of Ukraine caused gasoline prices to surge ahead of congressional elections in 2022."
Details: Reuters noted that voters are not convinced by Trump's arguments. According to a Reuters/Ipsos poll, around 78% of Americans believe his policies are at least partly responsible for rising prices. Most Republicans and Democrats alike identified the cost of living as their main concern.
Meanwhile, Zelenskyy told visiting US lawmakers on 19 October that the latest "decisions on the American side… are hard to explain".
Background: Zelenskyy said he believed Trump could help end Russia's war against Ukraine if he changed his rhetoric towards Putin.
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