US will not abandon Ukraine. Otherwise, China will use Trump's weakness - international expert

International expert Oleksandr Kraiev stated on the air of Espreso.

"The Americans will not be able to abandon Ukraine in one moment. The US administration understands perfectly well that any sign of weakness in relation to allies outside of NATO is carefully monitored. China is closely monitoring this. Any manifestation of weakness on the part of Trump will be immediately used by the Chinese and will continue to use it for as long as possible. They will use it in trade conflicts, the issue of Taiwan, relations with ASEAN, the South China Sea and the borders in the Sea of ​​Japan," he noted.

Any statements that America will now withdraw from Europe, and Europe and Ukraine will be left alone, are a prospect that Trump wants to realize. However, he will not be able to do this immediately and without the participation of the Europeans, says Kraiev.

"If we leave Europe and reduce aid to Ukraine, someone must demonstrate the power of the West and relay American leadership. To do this, Europe must arm itself and be ready," he added.

The visit of European leaders and politicians to Washington, although it looks like a regular visit to discuss general topics, could actually have a big impact.

"Although Europe has not yet been invited to the negotiating table, without Europe the US administration will not be able to finalize the agreements. It is Europe that will be responsible for participating in peacekeeping missions, providing weapons and financial assistance to Ukraine. If Trump wants to spend less on Ukraine, he must first reach an agreement with the Ukrainians and the Europeans. He will not be able to completely abandon us, or his image, which he is actively working on, will suffer," says Kraiev.

For Trump, negotiations are like business negotiations. Playing along with dictators is normal for Trump, because it is with them that he wants to reach an agreement. Threatening allies is also normal for him, because he understands that they depend on him, and threats will achieve more than a regular conversation, the international expert noted.

"When he communicates with a specific party, especially if it is a dictatorial party, he will praise it, sometimes even excessively, and flirt with it, just to reach an agreement. Ultimately, he does not care how it will end. The main thing for him is to appear as a strong, powerful negotiator, so that the fire stops, and the war is put on hold, because this is what he promised his voter. How the war will stop, on what terms, for how long is secondary," Kraiev noted.

During his previous presidency, Trump flirted with Putin in Helsinki in 2018, saying that he trusted him more than the CIA director. But that didn't stop Ukraine from getting Javelin a month later.

"These flirtations with the Russians are part of what Trump is doing. A similar situation happened with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. On the second day after his inauguration, Trump said he had a call with Xi and that he was his very good friend, with whom they would establish peace around the world. Literally 20 hours later, he announced new tariffs and sanctions against China, starting a new trade war. Trump's praise is not permanent, and Ukraine has seen this very well," he concluded.

• US President Donald Trump said he expects Chinese leader Xi Jinping to visit the United States. However, he did not name the date of the likely arrival.