It is not yet known how American assistance to Ukraine will or will not continue under the new US President Donald Trump. This was stated by Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky.
He recalled that this week the acting US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken visited Brussels, who said that President Joe Biden wants to strengthen military support for Ukraine before the end of his mandate.
"It won't be like Donald Trump can flip a switch and the next day Ukraine will have nothing at all. But Europe's task is to show that we are really not passengers, but we can take care of our own safety," he said.
According to him, the statements of Trump and other Republicans regarding Ukraine are in some sense vague.
"Personally, I remain optimistic. You always have to prepare for all scenarios, so I say that Europe should invest more in defense... At the same time, when I look at what Donald Trump says about China, about Iran, about security in the Middle East, how he talks about North Korea, it would seem strange to me, if Russia had not been included in this list," the minister added.
In addition, Lipavsky said that if Marco Rubio becomes US Foreign Minister, this will be good news for the Czech Republic, since it will have a partner well versed in geopolitics. According to him, 53-year-old Rubio will be "a fearless fighter who will never give in to our enemies."
"It would be possible to negotiate with him on a number of issues, and we would certainly find mutual understanding with him," Lipavsky said.
Earlier, Trump stated that he would resolve the conflict on Ukraine as an elected president even before the inauguration. However, he did not explain how he plans to do this. In addition, the new US president's entourage has a negative attitude towards further sending weapons and money to Kiev.