Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky today congratulated Donald Trump on his "impressive victory" in the presidential elections in the USA, expressing hope that his election will help Ukraine achieve a "just peace", reported France Press.
"I appreciate President Trump's commitment to a "peace through strength" in world affairs. This is exactly the principle that can bring Ukraine closer to a just peace," Zelensky said.
Trump has repeatedly stated that he can achieve peace in Ukraine in "24 hours". But in no case did he say how he would do it. In addition, Trump has criticized the scale of US aid to Kiev and praised Russian President Vladimir Putin. Fears in Europe and Ukraine are that Donald Trump will force Ukraine to negotiate with Russia under conditions that are extremely favorable to Moscow, notes AFP.
In this context, Zelensky called for "strong bipartisan support for Ukraine" by American Democrats and Republicans.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Denis Shmygal also congratulated the new US president, saying he was happy with the idea of a new "era in which the United States will be strong" under Trump.
"We hope to strengthen our strategic partnership", he continued, while calling for a "just peace".
For his part, Zelensky also reminded of the "great" his meeting with Donald Trump in New York in September, during which they "discussed in detail the strategic partnership between Ukraine and the United States, the victory plan and ways to end Russian aggression against Ukraine".
The head of the presidential office, Andriy Yermak, today assessed the meeting of the two leaders in September as "productive". "It is essential that Ukraine has bipartisan support in the United States," he wrote in "Telegram".
Zelensky and Trump have a complicated relationship, also due to an American political scandal dating back to 2019. Then a phone conversation between Trump in his capacity as US president and Zelensky was revealed. Trump has been accused of pressuring Ukraine to launch a corruption investigation into the outgoing president's son and Democratic rival Joe Biden. The case led to impeachment proceedings against Donald Trump, but he was eventually acquitted by the US Senate.