Trump's Unity Push Shifts Ukraine War Balance, Says Top US Senator

"I welcome reports that the United States, Ukraine, and Europe have coalesced around a common negotiating position to end Putin's war of aggression," said Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Roger Wicker.

"The West's demonstration of unity sends a clear signal to Putin. His plan to divide us will fail,"he said.

Wicker credited President Donald Trump with building that alignment. "President Trump has succeeded in fostering unity, which allows the West to engage Putin from a position of strength," he said.

The Mississippi senator rejected what he described as Moscow's portrayal of the conflict. "Putin, ever the KGB agent, continues to peddle a false narrative," Wicker said. "He wants the world to believe that Russia will inevitably achieve its military goals in Ukraine. The facts on the ground say otherwise."

Pointing to recent battlefield developments, Wicker said, "Ukraine has successfully retaken Kupiansk, and Russia remains unable to seize Pokrovsk. Both illustrate that Putin's narrative rings hollow." He added, "Putin cannot generate the combat power needed to achieve his maximalist political goals. Ukraine continues to out-innovate Russia."

Wicker said European partners, encouraged by Trump, were stepping up. "At President Trump's urging, our European allies have taken significant steps to rebuild their industrial base alongside the United States," he said.

He accused Moscow of spreading false claims to undermine diplomacy. "Putin understands the unity of the West as the greatest threat to his aims," Wicker said, adding that allegations of Ukrainian attacks near Putin's residence in Novograd were "unsubstantiated" and "an obvious pretext for rejecting President Trump's peace terms."

Asserting that Ukraine is ready for peace on just and realistic terms, the Senator noted that the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky "has repeatedly been willing to make public concessions."

He warned against any settlement that would force Kyiv to surrender territory. "His country should not be compelled to accept a peace that requires it to cede unoccupied territory to the Russians," he said.

Wicker urged greater military support, calling for increased aid, "in particular, air defenses and long-range strike weapons," and said "credible security guarantees for Ukraine are indispensable to any lasting cessation of hostilities." He welcomed Trump's proposal to submit such guarantees to the Senate, saying approval would show "broad, bipartisan support for Ukraine."

"It is time to end this war," Wicker said. "But the end of hostilities must not reward the aggressor or cause the victim to suffer further."

The Russia-Ukraine war that began in February 2022 is the largest conflict in Europe since World War II. The war has displaced millions and reshaped security debates across Europe and within NATO.

Washington has provided billions of dollars in military and economic assistance to Kyiv since the invasion, while European nations have increased defense spending and coordinated arms production, even as diplomatic efforts continue to seek an end to the fighting. said in a statement. "The West's demonstration of unity sends a clear signal to Putin. His plan to divide us will fail."

- IANS