Ukraine and Europe have little choice but to work with Trump

“It’s painful when President [Donald] Trump chooses one side, not our side,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Wednesday. The United States president’s much-discussed diesel deal with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, has become another source of tension between Washington and Ukraine and its European backers.The reported disruption of Starlink/Starshield services on October 13-14, which wrongfooted Ukraine’s military, has added to those tensions. Service was later restored, and reports that the restrictions were imposed at the White House’s behest to pressure Kyiv remained unconfirmed.Nevertheless, the two episodes have reinforced the impression of a widening rift between Ukraine and the US. On Friday, Zelensky accused Washington of continuing to throttle Starlink and promising the Russians new concessions.Obviously, one needs to wait until the dust settles. Trump has tilted towards Moscow before, notably at his August 2025 summit with Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, only to return to conditional support for Ukraine amid Russian intransigence and diplomatic efforts by Kyiv and European leaders. The arrangement under which Europe pays for US weapons delivered to Uk...