U.S. military support for Ukraine will continue, says diplomat Bryza

This opinion was expressed by former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State, former Director for European and Eurasian Affairs at the U.S. National Security Council Matthew Bryza in an interview with Espreso.

“Trump understands the importance of being the one who brokers the deal or facilitates the agreement to end Russia's war on Ukraine. Ukraine must continue to exist. Ukraine cannot be vanquished or completely defeated because if that happens, Ukraine will never agree to any settlement. If Ukraine is defeated, then Trump fails, and Putin wins, and Trump does not want that outcome either. So, he has said in recent weeks that, number one, yes, he wants to make sure the war ends, but number two, Ukraine should not join NATO. And number three, the United States must continue to provide Ukraine with the military capabilities it needs to survive Russian aggression,” Bryza said.

According to the diplomat, Trump’s mindset is that he wants to broker the agreement, but for that to happen, Ukraine cannot be too weak. Ukraine cannot be destroyed by Putin, or else there will be no agreement.

“Knowing the senior staff coming into the White House, they think about the world in the traditional way. They come from the former policy-making circles, often with backgrounds in military service. For example, Mike Waltz, who will be the National Security Advisor, is a member of Congress with significant experience. He is also an intellectual when it comes to international security. His deputies come from the academic world and have previous National Security Council experience. They will always be there to try to channel Trump’s overall drive to reach a deal in a positive direction. I think that is better for the transatlantic family,” Bryza said.

He added that the U.S. and its European allies are committed to continuing their military support for Ukraine, even if Hungary, Slovakia, and Spain are wavering.

“The other members of NATO want to continue providing, and will continue providing, the support that Ukraine needs. At some point, Trump will lean in and try to broker a deal. I think it’s clear that, at some point, the people of Ukraine and the leadership of Russia will want to come up with a way to end the war. It will all depend on what the terms are, and that is something Trump wants to negotiate. We cannot predict what the level of U.S. and European military assistance to Ukraine will be, I am convinced that it will keep coming,” he concluded.