Ukraine Watches U.S. Election with Mounting Anxiety
Ukrainian ©(Handout/Ukrainian presidential press-service/AFP)

Ukrainians are nervously following the final days of the US presidential election campaign, some fearing a victory for Donald Trump could halt Washington's vital aid.

Tuesday's US vote will take place as the war with Russia grinds through its third year, with the outnumbered and outgunned Ukrainian army on the back foot against Russia's advancing troops.

Moscow's alliance with Pyongyang appears more solid than ever, with Washington and Seoul saying thousands of North Korean troops have been sent to Russia.

By contrast, Ukraine's war-fatigued backers could be further disheartened by the potential return to the White House of Trump, who has given no assurance of support to Kyiv.

"A Trump victory would create grave risks. The situation would be alarming," former Ukrainian ambassador to the US Oleg Shamshur told AFP.

Washington has driven NATO-wide support to Ukraine, with Kyiv receiving billions of dollars in financial and military aid enabling it to keep up the fight against a much more powerful Russia.

That support has however been eroded in Europe and the United States over the past few months.

Trump's repeated criticism of US support for Ukraine and claims that he would end the fighting within 24 hours, have only raised Ukraine's fears.

"Neither he nor his team believe in Ukraine's victory," Shamshur said.

'No matter who wins' 

Trump has refused to say whether he wanted Ukraine to win, and has not published any strategy on how to end the war.

His running mate JD Vance has advocated freezing combat along current lines, around which a demilitarised zone would be set up.

Trump's plan would also put pressure on Kyiv to give up its aspiration to join NATO, as the Kremlin wishes, which would leave Ukraine vulnerable to further attacks.

"This will be a respite for Putin," said Shamshur, adding that he believed Russia would use that time to rebuild its army and resume, when ready, its plans "aimed at the complete destruction of Ukraine".

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has already ruled out the territorial concessions demanded by Russia.

"Ukraine will not recognise these territories (as Russian), no matter who wants it to, no matter who wins in the US," he said in an interview for the South Korean TV channel KBS.

A senior Ukrainian presidency official, however, expressed more conciliatory views in a conversation with AFP.

He said the meeting between Trump and Zelensky, which took place in the United States in September, had gone "very well".

"Trump will surely not want to be the man that led America to lose face to Putin," he said, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity.

Ukraine is preparing for all possible outcomes and fostering relations with teams of both candidates, the official added.

By Ania TSOUKANOVA and Oleksandr YANOVSKY with AFP

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