What’s behind Trump’s efforts to establish contacts with Ukrainian politicians?

A noticeable repoliticization of society is taking place, where the emotions of war and expectations of post-war conditions are being transferred to the political backdrop. Ukrainians are looking for their "gods" on Olympus, who would explain to them how to live in the future.

Politico shares its thoughts on what is happening in Ukrainian politics. According to the journalists, Trump’s team has made it clear that they disdain Zelenskyy and are seeking support for the idea of elections, contacting other Ukrainian politicians. Trump's inner circle believes Zelenskyy will lose the next elections. It is said that contacts include President Trump's son, Donald Trump Jr., his son-in-law Jared Kushner, host Tucker Carlson, and special envoy Steve Witkoff.

This report from the American outlet requires explanation and clarification.

First, all these movements from Trump’s circle are situational and non-binding. They need Ukrainian politicians only as a tool to keep the Ukrainian government on edge.

Second, the White House’s interest may manifest in three clusters: old politicians (Klychko, Poroshenko, Tymoshenko, Boyko, etc.), authoritative and media-friendly military leaders (Zaluzhnyi, Biletskyi, Prokopenko), and some opinion leaders who could be useful in specific communication campaigns and media wars (e.g., Arestovych, Honcharenko, Zhelezniak).

Third, the relevance of these connections grows in the context of the upcoming parliamentary elections, as the main struggle will be for the position of prime minister, who formally holds more influential tools than the president, whose position is predictably forecasted for Zaluzhnyi, who would focus on security and defense issues.

However, it should be taken into account that over time, as Zaluzhnyi’s image becomes more politicized, a clear phenomenon will emerge in the form of an objective formation of an anti-rating, which, with efforts from the government, may be fueled by exploiting civilian fears.

Fourth, “showing” one’s contacts and connections with Trump’s circle is dangerous for political players at this stage, as Trump’s persona is perceived rather ambiguously by Ukrainians, and sometimes quite negatively. One could easily be labeled a "traitor" or a political parasite during the war.

Source

About the author: Oleh Posternak, political technologist, political consultant, member of the Association of Professional Political Consultants of Ukraine

The editorial team does not always share the opinions expressed by the authors of the blogs.