Donald Trump Jr, the eldest son of the former US president, has suggested his father could abandon American support for Ukraine's war effort if he returns to the White House. The comments came during a tirade against Ukrainian leadership and European Union policy at a conference in the Middle East.
Scathing Critique of Ukrainian Leadership and EU Strategy
In a wide-ranging speech, Trump Jr launched a fierce attack on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, claiming he was deliberately prolonging the conflict. He argued Zelenskyy knew he would never win an election if peace were declared, and described him as a "borderline deity on the left".
He also turned his fire on the European Union's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas. Trump Jr asserted that EU sanctions on Russia were ineffective, stating they had merely driven up global oil prices, thereby filling Moscow's war coffers. He dismissed the European strategy, sarcastically summarising it as: "we are going to wait for Russia to go bankrupt – that is not a plan".
Claims of Corruption and a 'Peasant Class' Left to Fight
Making highly contentious claims about Ukrainian society, Trump Jr alleged the country's wealthy elite had fled at the onset of the war. He stated they had left "what they believed to be the peasant class" to fight on the front lines.
To illustrate his point about corruption, he cited an anecdote from a visit to Monaco this summer. He claimed, without providing evidence, that 50% of the supercars like Bugattis and Ferraris he saw in a single day had Ukrainian number plates. "Do you think that was earned in Ukraine?" he asked the audience, implying illicit wealth.
"The rich fled and they left what they believed to be the peasant class to fight these wars," he continued. "There was no incentive to stop because as long as the money train was coming and they were stealing, no one was auditing anything so there was no reason to come to peace."
Implications for Future US Foreign Policy Under Trump
While Donald Trump Jr holds no formal position within his father's political apparatus, he remains a pivotal voice in the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement. His intervention highlights the significant scepticism towards continued military aid for Ukraine within Trump's inner circle. This comes as Trump's negotiating team is reportedly pressuring Kyiv to concede territory to end the war.
When questioned on whether his father might simply "walk away" from the conflict—having campaigned previously on a promise to broker peace—Trump Jr said it was a possibility. He described his father as "one of the most unpredictable people in politics".
He further downplayed the war's significance to American voters, claiming that during the 2022 election campaign, he met only three people who ranked it as a top-ten issue. He instead pointed to the risk of fentanyl trafficking from Venezuela as a "far more a clear and present danger" to the United States.
In a final, stark declaration on America's global role, Trump Jr vowed that the US was no longer going to be "the idiot with the chequebook", signalling a potential dramatic shift towards isolationism in future Republican foreign policy.
