Donald Trump has hinted that he may withdraw support for Ukraine, while further intensifying his administration's criticism of Europe, which he said is weak and failing, claiming that it is "destroying itself" through immigration.
In a lengthy and at times confusing interview with Politico, the transcript of which was published yesterday, the US president barely managed to name any other Ukrainian city besides Kyiv, misrepresented certain aspects of the course of the conflict and repeated far-right narratives about European immigration that are reminiscent of the "great swap" conspiracy theory, the Guardian reported.
Trump has urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to accept his proposal to cede territory to Russia, arguing that Moscow is still in a better position and that Zelensky's government must cooperate.
Asked if he had set a deadline for Zelensky to agree to the deal, Trump said: "Well, he's going to have to wake up and start accepting things... because he's losing," the US president said.
Trump's envoys have given Zelensky several days to respond to a proposed peace deal that would require Ukraine to accept the loss of territory in exchange for unspecified US security guarantees, the Financial Times reported yesterday, citing officials familiar with the talks.
The Ukrainian president told his European counterparts that he had been pressured by Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and the US president's son-in-law Jared Kushner to make a decision quickly during a two-hour meeting on Saturday. A person familiar with the deadlines proposed to Kiev said Trump wanted a deal "by Christmas."
Politico yesterday named Trump the most influential figure shaping European politics in the year ahead, a distinction previously bestowed upon leaders such as Zelensky, Italian Prime Minister Giorgi Meloni, and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
Trump jumped from topic to topic in the interview, repeating well-known grievances and conspiracy theories. He also repeatedly refused to rule out sending U.S. troops to Venezuela as part of an effort to topple President Nicolas Maduro.
"I don't want to rule that out. I'm not talking about that," Trump said, adding that he didn't want to talk about military strategy.
He repeatedly described what he called European problems, while calling some unnamed European leaders "really stupid."
"I think they're weak," Trump said, referring to the presidents and prime ministers of European countries, adding: "I don't think they know what to do. Europe doesn't know what to do."
"If it continues the way it is, Europe will not be... in my opinion... many of these countries will no longer be viable states. Their immigration policy is a disaster. What they are doing with immigration is a disaster. We had a disaster on the horizon, too, but I managed to stop it."
"Politiko" writes that Trump's confident comments about Europe contrast sharply with some of his statements on domestic issues.
The president and his party have faced a series of electoral setbacks and mounting gridlock in Congress this fall, as voters have been outraged by the high cost of living. The portal notes that Trump has struggled to offer a message that responds to the new reality, giving the economy an “A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus” in an interview, claiming that prices are falling across the board and refusing to lay out a specific remedy for the impending spike in health insurance premiums.
The interview followed the release of a new US national security strategy last week, which claimed that Europe was at risk of "civilizational erasure" due to mass migration and gave tacit support to far-right parties.
Top US officials have also sharply criticized the bloc for censorship after the European Commission fined Elon Musk's social network Facebook 120 million euros for violating transparency rules.
European leaders have greeted these remarks with growing disapproval, following similar disparaging comments by US Vice President J.D. Vance at the Munich Security Conference in February.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has rejected the claim that European democracy needs rescuing and described some elements of the new national security strategy as unacceptable. Merz said yesterday that the document stressed the need for a European security policy that would be more independent of Washington.
"Some of it is unacceptable for us from a European perspective," he told reporters during a visit to Mainz. "The fact that the Americans now want to save democracy in Europe, I don't see any need for it... And if it needs to be saved, we could do it ourselves."
European foreign policy chief Kaia Kalas said criticism of freedoms in the EU should be directed elsewhere, "perhaps at Russia," Reuters reported.
“The European Union is the very essence of freedom,” said Kallas, addressing a European Parliament committee.
Commenting on the changes he said were taking place in major European cities like London and Paris, Trump made it clear that the problem, as he sees it, is that these cities are becoming less white, according to The Guardian. He again singled out London's first Muslim mayor, Sadiq Khan, as a target of criticism.
"And Europe is… if you look at Paris, it's a much different place. I loved Paris. It's a much different place now than it was. If you look at London, you have a mayor named Khan."
"He's a terrible mayor. He's an incompetent mayor, but he's a terrible, evil, disgusting mayor. I think he's done a terrible job. London is a different place. I love London. I love London. And I hate to see what's going on. You know, my roots are in Europe, as you know."
"They come to Europe from all over the world. Not just from the Middle East, they come from Congo, a huge number of people come from Congo. And even worse, they come from Congolese prisons and from many other countries."
Asked if the direction European countries are taking means they will no longer be American allies, Trump replied: "Or they will be... well, it depends. You know, it depends. They will change their ideology, obviously, because the people who are coming in have a completely different ideology. But it will make them much weaker. They will be much... they will be much weaker and they will be much different."
While denying that he has a specific vision for Europe, Trump admitted that he has “supported people that many Europeans don’t like,” including Orban.
“I don’t have any vision for Europe. All I want is to see a strong Europe. I have a vision for the United States first. That is to make America great again,” he said. “I’m supposedly a very smart person, I can… I have eyes. I have ears. I have knowledge. I have the knowledge. I see what’s going on. I get reports that you’ll never see. And I think it’s terrible what’s happening to Europe.”
Cost: “Show some respect”
European Council President Antonio Costa said that Europe and the US "must act as allies" and called on the Republican leader to show "respect."
"We respect the choice of American citizens, and they should respect the democratic choices of our citizens," he added at a press conference in Ireland.
"When all the leaders elect me as President of the European Council, President Trump must respect that. Just as we respect that the American people elected him as President of the United States. That is simply how allies treat each other."
When asked by "Politika" to comment on Trump's criticism, European Commission spokesperson Paula Pinho strongly defended European leaders.
"We are very pleased and grateful to have extraordinary leaders, starting with the leader of this institution, European Commission President von der Leyen, of whom we are truly proud and who can lead us through the many challenges the world faces," said Pinho.
She also praised "the many other leaders at the head of the 27 member states that make up this European project, this peace project, and who are leading the EU through all the challenges it faces, from trade to war in our neighborhood."
She added: "I would therefore like to take this opportunity to reiterate what millions of citizens in the EU feel: we are proud of our leaders."
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