White House sees Europe, not Russia, as key rival: international journalist on Munich Conference

She stated this on Espreso TV.

"The spectacular speech by U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance was like a cold shower. Munich welcomed us with light morning snow, but the real storm began with Vance's speech. I agree with the assessment that Trump's team is playing 'good cop, bad cop,' as other members of the U.S. delegation participated in the panel after the vice president. For instance, Senator Lindsey Graham stated that in his 25 years of attending Munich conferences, Americans have always emphasized that Putin is an enemy and that Russia pursues an aggressive policy toward European countries," Prysiazhniuk commented.

In her opinion, all these statements and what appears in Western media seem like a well-coordinated information campaign—an "emotional shock therapy" aimed at stirring their opponents. The only problem is that the new White House team considers European countries as opponents rather than Russia. And this is a fundamental mistake.

"I noticed that MP Oleksii Honcharenko was also at the conference and published a question he posed to the American delegates: 'Does America want to be great again alone?' History has already seen this approach in international relations theories, and it would be unfortunate to return to those narratives. As for specifics, during the statements by Zelenskyy and J.D. Vance, no concrete steps or timelines were announced. The sides met, discussed matters, and the American side took a pause to review the memorandum prepared by Ukraine. While President Zelenskyy shared some assessments and forecasts, Vance was much more reserved in his communication with journalists," the journalist noted.

Prysiazhniuk highlighted President Zelenskyy's statement regarding a possible Russian aggression against European countries next year. In her view, this was one of the key statements of the day. If the current geopolitical dynamics are seen as a challenge for the entire European continent rather than just Russian aggression against Ukraine, then this statement is central and crucial today.

• On February 14, the 61st Munich Security Conference began. The Ukrainian delegation at the conference was led by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. It also included the head of the Presidential Office, Andriy Yermak, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, and Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Pavlo Palisa.