US President-elect Donald Trump has made many phone discussions with European leaders, raising concerns about Washington’s commitment to Ukraine’s defence under the new government.

PoliticsUnited States of AmericaTrump talks Ukraine in separate calls with Putin, Scholz2 hours ago2 hours agoUS president-elect Trump has held several phone calls with leaders in Europe as questions persist over Washington’s commitment to Ukraine’s defense under the new presidential administration.https://p.dw.com/p/4mrACTrump and Putin Trump has vowed to end the war in Ukraine, without explaining howImage: Maxim Shipenkov/Alex Brandon/AP PhotoAdvertisementUS President-elect Donald Trump has spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin about ending the war in Ukraine in a phone call reported by the Washington Post on Sunday. The newspaper, citing several people familiar with the call who spoke on the basis of anonymity, reported that Trump had reminded Putin of the sizable US military presence in Europe.The Post also reported that Trump was keen to have further conversations to talk about “the resolution” of the war soon. Trump has criticized the scale of military and financial support for Kyiv under US President Joe Biden’s administration, while the soon-to-be president has vowed to end the war quickly, without specifying how.Trump spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday shortly after his election victory was confirmed.

Ukraine’s foreign ministry said it was not informed in advance of the call between Trump and Putin.”We do not comment on private calls between President Trump and other world leaders,” Steven Cheung, Trump’s communications director, said when asked about the contact between the two leaders.The call was reported to have taken place from Trump’s Mar-a-lago estate on Thursday.

On Trump’s return to the Oval Office, Moscow spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated Sunday that “the signals are positive…” At least he’s talking about peace, not conflict.” The Biden administration, which will be in charge until Trump’s inauguration on January 20, has promised to provide Ukraine as much aid as possible before Biden leaves office. On Sunday, Jake Sullivan, Biden’s National Security Advisor, stated that the White House’s goal is “to put Ukraine in the strongest possible position on the battlefield so that it is ultimately in the strongest possible position at the negotiating table.” Sullivan also stated that Biden had invited Trump to the White House for talks on Wednesday.

“You dance with those who are in the room,” Scholz says about the idea of working with Trump. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also spoke with Trump on Sunday about working together to bring “peace” to Europe, according to Scholz’s spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit. During the call, Scholz highlighted the need of continuing to support Ukraine, Hebestreit stated.