Trump's approach: Economic support over military aid to Ukraine

During a meeting with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, US President Donald Trump emphasized that he does not intend to provide military guarantees to Ukraine. Instead, he pointed to an agreement regarding access to Ukrainian resources as a form of American support. Starmer noted that lasting peace in Ukraine requires American security guarantees.

Trump explained that the resources agreement with Ukraine includes the creation of a special fund that will receive 50% of the revenues from the sale of Ukrainian resources. This fund is expected to reach a value of $500 billion and will be allocated to Ukraine's reconstruction projects. "We're going to be working over there. We'll be on the land, and you know, that way it's this sort of automatic security, because nobody's going to be messing around with our people when we're there," Trump said, emphasizing the importance of economic cooperation.

In the context of talks with Russia, Trump announced the application of the "trust but verify" principle, referencing Ronald Reagan's approach. "Russia is behaving very well," he stated, adding that peace talks are advanced but not yet concluded. The US president did not want to reveal details of a potential peace mission in Ukraine.

Prime Minister Starmer emphasized that any peace agreement cannot reward the aggressor. He expressed readiness to send British soldiers to Ukraine as part of a European contingent, provided the appropriate conditions are met. Starmer noted that Europeans fear a hastily concluded peace might lead to further instability in the region.

Trump claims that, although he thought Putin wanted to take all of Ukraine, US involvement "changed a lot" and he said he believes that Putin will not break a potential agreement. At the beginning of the meeting, he stated that he trusts Putin because they "went through the Russian hoax together," referring to the affair concerning his campaign team's ties to the Kremlin during the 2016 election campaign.

He emphasized that his goal is to ensure that a similar war to the one in Ukraine never happens again in Europe. He also added that he seeks peace for two reasons: humanitarian, to stop the killing, and economic, to avoid spending more money on aid to Ukraine.

The topic of security guarantees and US support in the case of European countries sending soldiers to Ukraine was the main issue discussed during Trump's meeting with Starmer.

Starmer again declared a willingness to send British soldiers and planes to guarantee lasting peace and said he talked to Trump about ensuring US support in this regard. He also said he held talks on the matter with several countries, including France.

The Prime Minister emphasized that European nations, including the United Kingdom, must increase their spending on security and defense. He also highlighted the enduring alliance, noting that, as history has shown, they can always rely on each other.

The head of government in London also claimed that the West must "win peace in Ukraine," and together with Trump, they are discussing a "hard but fair" peace that will not reward the aggressor and "stop Putin from returning."

Nevertheless, Thursday's talks did not signal a breakthrough regarding potential security guarantees. Asked at the beginning of the meeting, Trump suggested that such a guarantee would be the very presence of American companies in Ukraine and their interest in extracting critical minerals under the agreement set to be signed with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday.

Trump, meanwhile, abandoned his previous criticism of the Ukrainian president, spoke warmly of him, and jokingly claimed not to remember ever calling him a dictator. He assessed that the minerals agreement will be good for both the US and Ukraine and that it will allow America to recover while also laying the foundation for "more permanent" relations with Kyiv.