“A just peace will be a shared victory”

Orbán began, months ago, an international campaign that included a stop at the candidate’s residence donald trump. He encouraged him to close an agreement with Putin that sacrifices the cause of the Ukrainian people, with at least a fifth of its territory occupied. Trump, according to his campaign statements, seems—at the very least—open to accepting it. AND Orbán, now, claims victory. “With the US elections,” he told the displaced European journalists, “a chapter has closed.”

There are recent scenes that settle Ukrainians into pessimism. When Zelensky last traveled to New York, in September, he met with Trump in one of his skyscrapers. “I have a very good relationship with him, just like I do with President Putin,” said the Republican, with the resistance leader to his right. “I hope ours is better”Zelensky replied, and Trump finished: “Oh, well, it takes two to tango.” Nor does it inspire confidence that the magnate identifies the European leader as “the best businessman in the world,” alluding to the billion-dollar packages with which the United States contributes to Ukraine’s military effort.

The Ukrainian president, however, is trying to reverse his destiny. “Some have advocated for Ukraine to make concessions to Putin,” he said, with a clear address. “It is unacceptable and suicidal for all of Europe”. Zelensky is adopting a constructive mood after the victory on Tuesday of Donald Trump, who will have his hands free of checks and balances in his last term. He was one of the first to congratulate him on the phone. “It has been a positive, productive conversation,” he explained. “We hope that the United States becomes stronger, because it is the United States that Europe needs. And a strong Europe is what the United States needs. This is the connection between allies that must be valued and cannot be lost.”

Zelensky has solid support in this endeavor. Beyond the major European capitals, the new Secretary General of NATO, Mark Ruttetries to convince the next president of the United States that it is in his interest to maintain the fight against Russian imperialism, remembering the significance of the deployment of US troops. Kim Jong-un in Europe.

“This role of North Korea basically illustrates how China, North Korea, Russia and Iran work together,” emphasized the former prime minister of the Netherlands, who became friends with Trump when they coincided in power. “If Russia were successful in Ukraine, we would have an emboldened Russia on our border, which would have gained land mass, which would have gained the enormous Ukrainian Defense Force, but also the ability of the Ukrainian people. “So that would be a threat not only to Europe, to the European part of NATO, but also to the United States.”

Zelensky maintains the hope that his plan for victory, more solid and analyzed in European capitals than what was revealed in the media, as this newspaper learned, will receive a new reading in Washington. “We must pressure Russia towards a just peace”he stated on Thursday. “A just peace will be a shared victory.” The success of his agenda will depend, in part, on the advisors and collaborators who surround Trump from now on, in positions of power such as Secretary of State, Secretary of Defense or National Security Advisor. There is more division of opinion than is assumed.

Some Republicans are leaning toward a quick resolution that would freeze the conflict, frustrate Ukrainians and celebrate in the Kremlin. Others are convinced that the path to peace involves going further in the defense of Ukraine than the still president. Joe Biden. Many critics of the current occupant of the White House regret that his contributions come in a drip and are excessively limited and conservative, as in the case of the use of long-range missiles. “The United States gives Ukraine enough not to lose the war,” they often say, “but not enough to win it.”

The Ukrainians, meanwhile, await the next moves in the White House to draw conclusions. The general mood, as among Europeanists, is one of concern and skepticism.