What will be the US policy towards Ukraine after the presidential election remains a question due to the lack of clear explanation from US President Joe Biden and Republican candidate Donald Trump during the debate on Thursday, June 27. Writes UNN with reference to "Voice of America".
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The first pre-election debate between White House Chief of Staff Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump did not bring any certainty as to what exactly the US policy toward Ukraine will be after the presidential election.
Viewers were not able to get clear explanations of the positions of both candidates on Ukraine.
Andriy Dobriansky, spokesperson for the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America, said in a commentary for Voice of America:
"The question about Ukraine was sometimes mixed up with Israel - not by the moderators, but during the answers - so we didn't really get a clear explanation of the future policy of both presidential administrations toward Ukraine," he said.
Another expert, Michael Kimmage, chair of the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., saw Trump reaffirming his skepticism of Zelenskyy in the debate. At the same time, the former US president did not send any signals that he might refuse to support Ukraine.
Після дебатів у США: вік Байдена домінує в глобальному висвітленні28.06.24, 10:21
Kimmage believes that Biden did not back down from his policy and "clearly stated his commitment to Ukraine's security, European security, and the fight against Russian aggression and authoritarianism." However, the analyst emphasizes that Biden really failed to effectively voice his views.
Ambassador Daniel Kurtzer, a professor of Middle East political studies, called Trump's comments on Ukraine "absurd" and could cause concern for US allies.
У Білому домі прокоментували план радників Трампа щодо припинення війни в України27.06.24, 01:10
Observers in the United States also noted that President Biden looked uncertain compared to Donald Trump.
"Joe Biden has increasingly looked helpless. Some of his responses were ambiguous and vague, which only increased the concern of many Americans that he may be too old to be president. But, like a boxer on the ropes, Biden began to make big swings at his opponent, trying to change the momentum [of the debate]. Some of them provoked former President Trump into angry responses," Anthony Zurcher, the BBC's North America correspondent, wrote on the BBC website .
At the same time, Trump seemed confident on economic and immigration issues, observers write.