On his first day in the White House after his inauguration, new US President Donald Trump made a number of significant statements regarding Russia's war against Ukraine and signed an executive order to review foreign aid.
On Monday, speaking to reporters in the Oval Office after signing the executive orders, Trump commented on the war in Ukraine, saying that Putin "would have done better" if he had ended the war in Ukraine, adding that the latter "is not doing very well" and that Russia has lost a million soldiers.
"I need to talk to President Putin, we need to sort things out. Russia is bigger [than Ukraine], they have more soldiers to lose, but running a country like this is weird," Trump said.
Trump also said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is ready for peace agreements. He expressed hope that the Russian president would also go to the talks because "he's destroying Russia without making a deal."
"Zelensky wants to make an agreement. I don't know if Putin wants to. He has to make a deal. I think he is destroying Russia without a deal. I think Russia is in big trouble. Just look at the inflation in Russia... I hope he wants to make a deal..." the American leader added.
Trump also criticized the current level of defense spending by NATO countries, saying that they should increase their contributions to 5% of GDP, and emphasized that the United States provides the largest assistance to Ukraine among its allies.
Regarding his own priorities, the president assured that he wants to end the war as soon as possible, which, according to him, "should never have started". "It would not have started if I had been president," he stressed.
Suspension of Foreign Aid
On his first day in office, Donald Trump signed an executive order temporarily suspending U.S. foreign aid programs for 90 days. The document states that "the foreign aid industry and bureaucracy are not in the American interest and in many cases are contrary to American values" and "serve to destabilize world peace by promoting ideas in foreign countries that are directly opposed to harmonious and stable relations within and among countries.
As a result, Trump declared that "no further foreign assistance from the United States should be disbursed in a manner that is not fully consistent with the foreign policy of the President of the United States."
For his part, Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasized that every expenditure should be justified by answering three questions: "Does it make America safer? Does it make America stronger? Does it make America more prosperous?"
Impact on military aid to Ukraine
The suspension of foreign aid does not affect military assistance to Ukraine. The Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council reported that the restrictions apply only to development programs related to UN activities, peacekeeping missions, and humanitarian initiatives.
Ukraine continues to receive assistance under the Presidential Drawdown (PDA), Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), and Foreign Military Financing (FMF) programs. Military assistance remains a priority for the United States in its security cooperation with Ukraine.
Author: Danylo Pievchev