PARIS, May 23. /TASS/. Kiev is concerned that the US will pull its military support, leaving the ill-equipped European defense industry to arm Ukraine in the conflict with Russia, advisor to the head of Vladimir Zelensky's office Mikhail Podolyak said in an interview with French magazine Le Point.
"Europe is rearming and changing its foreign and military policy accordingly. However, this transformation takes time. <...> We must not allow the United States to withdraw from this war, as American military support is extremely important for both Europe and Ukraine," he insisted.
In Podolyak's view, without strong relations with Europe - which he includes Ukraine in - the United States will not be able to maintain its "global leadership." He added that "Ukraine is a very agreeable partner for the US," and its current authorities have always been ready to sign agreements with Washington, "especially in the areas of economic and strategic cooperation." Thus, according to the adviser, "despite all of [US President Donald] Trump's emotional outbursts," Kiev sees "positive signals from US institutions and the president's inner-circle."
On May 21, Bloomberg quoted its sources as saying that Trump made it clear during a conversation with European leaders that he considered Russia to be the victorious party in the Ukrainian conflict. Trump held the conversation with the heads of several European nations after a phone talk with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
On May 19, Putin and Trump held a more than two-hour telephone call, primarily discussing ways to resolve the Ukraine conflict. Afterward, Putin expressed gratitude for US support in resuming direct talks between Russia and Ukraine. Moscow remains open to working with Kiev on a memorandum outlining a future peace treaty, focusing on addressing the underlying causes of the crisis, according to the Russian leader.