Trump to meet Ukraine's Zelenskiy after Harris pledges support
Biden announces $8 billion in military aid for Ukraine
Harris takes veiled jab at Trump over his stance
By Gram Slattery and Andrea Shalal
WASHINGTON, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Donald Trump said he would meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Friday, having criticized him on the U.S. campaign trail and expressed doubts about Ukraine's ability to win its war with Russia.
Trump, the Republican candidate in the Nov. 5 presidential election, made the announcement on Thursday, just hours after Democratic President Joe Biden announced more than $8 billion in new military aid for the U.S. ally.
Zelenskiy has long sought a meeting with Trump. The two men spoke by phone in July but have not met in person since Trump's term as president ended in 2021.
During a press conference on Thursday, Trump repeated his claims that he could rapidly negotiate a deal between Russia and Ukraine if he defeats Biden's vice president, Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate in the race for the White House.
"President Zelenskiy has asked to meet with me, and I will be meeting with him tomorrow morning at around 9:45 in Trump Tower" in New York, Trump said.
Asked by a reporter if Ukraine might have to give up any of its territory to reach a peace deal with Moscow - a non-starter for Kyiv - Trump did not rule it out.
"We'll see what happens," he said.
Shortly before Trump's comments, Harris pledged support for Ukraine and - in a veiled reference to Trump - said those who would have Ukraine swap land for peace with Russia were supporting "proposals of surrender."
Harris was speaking alongside Zelenskiy at the White House, a day after Trump assailed him for not making a deal with Russia that Trump said could have ended the war and shortly after the White House announcement of the new aid package.
It was Harris' seventh meeting with Zelenskiy and the third this year.
ZELENSKIY SOUGHT MEETING WITH TRUMP
Earlier in the week, Trump looked poised to reject Zelenskiy's meeting request.
The Ukrainian leader had said before departing for New York for the annual U.N. General Assembly that he hoped to present his "victory plan" to win the war with Russia to Harris, Trump and Biden.
But he upset Trump's campaign after visiting a munitions factory over the weekend in the battleground state of Pennsylvania with that state's governor, Josh Shapiro, a Democrat and a Harris ally.
Trump has stood by his criticisms of Zelenskiy on the campaign trail. He said on Monday that Zelenskiy wanted Harris to win the election, and on Wednesday he called the Eastern European nation "dead" and "demolished."
The U.S aid announced by Biden includes the first shipment of a precision-guided glide bomb called the Joint Standoff Weapon, with a range of up to 81 miles (130 km).
The medium-range missile gives Ukraine a major upgrade to the weapons it is using to strike Russian forces, allowing the Ukrainians to do it at safer distances.
The bulk of the new aid, $5.5 billion, is to be allocated before Monday's end of the U.S. fiscal year, when the funding authority is set to expire. Another $2.4 billion is under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which allows the administration to buy weapons for Ukraine from companies rather than pull them from U.S. stocks.
Biden also said he would order the Pentagon to expand training of Ukrainian F-16 pilots, including by supporting the training of an additional 18 pilots next year.
Zelenskiy thanked Biden and the U.S. Congress for the new military aid package, saying Ukraine would use it "in the most efficient and transparent manner".
"I am grateful to the United States for providing the items that are most critical to protecting our people," Zelenskiy said on X, mentioning a Patriot battery, drones and long-range missiles.
Reporting by Gram Slattery and Andrea Shalal; Editing by Howard Goller
آخر الأخبار
إخلاء المسؤولية: تتيح كيانات XM Group خدمة تنفيذية فقط والدخول إلى منصة تداولنا عبر الإنترنت، مما يسمح للشخص بمشاهدة و/أو استخدام المحتوى المتاح على موقع الويب أو عن طريقه، وهذا المحتوى لا يراد به التغيير أو التوسع عن ذلك. يخضع هذا الدخول والاستخدام دائماً لما يلي: (1) الشروط والأحكام؛ (2) تحذيرات المخاطر؛ (3) إخلاء المسؤولية الكامل. لذلك يُقدم هذا المحتوى على أنه ليس أكثر من معلومات عامة. تحديداً، يرجى الانتباه إلى أن المحتوى المتاح على منصة تداولنا عبر الإنترنت ليس طلباً أو عرضاً لدخول أي معاملات في الأسواق المالية. التداول في أي سوق مالي به مخاطرة عالية برأس مالك.
جميع المواد المنشورة على منصة تداولنا مخصصة للأغراض التعليمية/المعلوماتية فقط ولا تحتوي - ولا ينبغي اعتبار أنها تحتوي - على نصائح أو توصيات مالية أو ضريبية أو تجارية، أو سجلاً لأسعار تداولنا، أو عرضاً أو طلباً لأي معاملة في أي صكوك مالية أو عروض ترويجية مالية لا داعي لها.
أي محتوى تابع للغير بالإضافة إلى المحتوى الذي أعدته XM، مثل الآراء، والأخبار، والأبحاث، والتحليلات والأسعار وغيرها من المعلومات أو روابط مواقع تابعة للغير وواردة في هذا الموقع تُقدم لك "كما هي"، كتعليق عام على السوق ولا تعتبر نصيحة استثمارية. يجب ألا يُفسر أي محتوى على أنه بحث استثماري، وأن تلاحظ وتقبل أن المحتوى غير مُعدٍ وفقاً للمتطلبات القانونية المصممة لتعزيز استقلالية البحث الاستثماري، وبالتالي، فهو بمثابة تواصل تسويقي بموجب القوانين واللوائح ذات الصلة. فضلاً تأكد من أنك قد قرأت وفهمت الإخطار بالبحوث الاستثمارية غير المستقلة والتحذير من مخاطر المعلومات السابقة، والذي يمكنك الاطلاع عليه هنا.
