Trump says Ukraine's survival is important for the US and calls on Europe to provide more money

(Patria) - Donald Trump said on Thursday that Ukraine's survival is important for the United States, a change in tone days before the Republican-led US House of Representatives votes on a $61 billion aid package, Reuters reported.

The former president did not endorse the package, and devoted most of his post on his Truth Social platform
to lamenting that America's European allies were not spending enough to support Ukraine. Some far-right Republicans interpreted the post as a signal that he opposed the current aid package, although Trump did not explicitly say so.

Still, the post appeared to be one of Trump's first acknowledgments that Ukraine's survival is an important US security interest. Over the past year, Trump has refused to say whether he wants Ukraine to win its war with Russia when asked about the conflict.

"Why can’t Europe match or approximate the money that the United States has put in to help a country that is desperately in need?" he wrote on Thursday.

"As everyone agrees, Ukraine’s survival and strength should be much more important to Europe than to us, but it is also important to us! GET GOING EUROPE!“

Trump's post came a day after he praised Poland, following a meeting in New York with Polish President Andrzej Duda. Trump and the Polish leader discussed Duda's proposal for NATO members to spend at least three percent of their gross domestic product on defense, a campaign official said. Currently, they are asked to spend at least two percent of GDP.

House Speaker Republican Mike Johnson said the House will vote on the Ukraine aid package on Saturday, despite fierce objections from the right wing of his party.