On the Ukrainian front and in Kiev, hope and pragmatism are competing when it comes to Trump's election

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Soldiers from a Ukrainian artillery battery on the Front lines in the east of the country were only vaguely aware of American election results that pointed to a victory for Donald Trump on Wednesday – but were firm in their hopes for the next president of the United States.

Their entrenched artillery battery fires at Russian forces every day – and is shot at almost as often. Just the other day, one of their ceiling nets caught a Russian drone.

“I hope that the amount of weapons, the amount of guns for our victory will increase,” the unit's 39-year-old commander, who goes by the name Mozart, said in the hours before Trump's victory was confirmed. “We don’t care who is president as long as they don’t cut us off from help because we need it.”

Although Trump's election raises doubts American support for Ukraine – and ultimately the question of whether Kiev can repel the Russian invasion – was learned by the soldiers who used their Starlink connection to the Internet sparingly the results by Associated Press journalists.

Mozart – who, like other soldiers on Wednesday, did not give his name in accordance with Ukrainian military protocol and has given musical nicknames to positions on the battlefield – is among the many Ukrainians who hope that Trump will respond to American support for their country will hold on to the line. Russian forces have recently made progress in the east, although the commander described the situation on the front as “static.”

Under Trump, the United States sent weapons to Ukraine for the first time in 2017 in the fight against Russia. These Javelin anti-tank missiles were critical to Ukraine's ability to repel the full-scale invasion in 2022. But Trump is overall cautious about U.S. involvement in foreign conflicts.

Trump, who has praised his good relationship with President Vladimir Putin and called the Russian leader “pretty smart” for invading Ukraine, has repeatedly criticized American support for Ukraine. He called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky “the biggest salesman in the world” for winning US aid.

Zelensky was among the first world leaders to publicly congratulate Trump, saying the two had discussed how to end “Russian aggression against Ukraine.” They met in September.

“I appreciate President Trump's commitment to the 'peace through strength' approach to global affairs. It is precisely this principle that can practically bring a just peace in Ukraine closer. I hope we can make it happen together,” he wrote on the social platform X.

Trump has repeatedly said he has one Peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia concluded within a day if he is elected, although he hasn't said how. He said twice during his debate with Vice President Kamala Harris refused to answer directly a question about whether he wanted Ukraine to win – raising concerns that Kiev would be forced to accept unfavorable terms in any negotiations he led.

In Kiev, which is attacked almost daily by Russian drones, 18-year-old Viktoriia Zubrytska was pragmatic about her expectations of the next American president. She believes that under a Trump presidency, Ukraine will be forced to give up territory in exchange for peace. But she said she preferred that to what she called false hope offered by the Biden administration.

“We will live in a world of facts where we will be sure of what awaits us,” said the law student. “Certainty and objective truth are much better than lies and a life of illusion.”

According to VoteCast, 74% of voters who supported Harris supported continuing aid to Ukraine, while only 36% of Trump voters supported it. AP VoteCast is a survey of the American electorate conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago.

On the front lines in Ukraine's eastern Kharkiv region, Andriy, who calls himself “Rodych” or “relative,” was resigned to the fact that he has no power to influence the American vote.

“We’ll figure something out” whatever happens, he said.

“We are a protective shield between Europe and Russia,” he added. “Other countries don’t understand what’s happening here, they see it on TV and for them it’s far away.”

America's NATO allies also watched the election closely. France and Germany agreed to a last-minute meeting at the highest defense level in Paris on Wednesday to discuss the findings, and Ukraine is expected to be the focus of the meeting. The two leading powers in the European Union are providing significant support to Ukraine in its defense against Russia's war.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte also invoked Trump's “peace through strength” motto, citing a “more aggressive Russia.”

Rutte praised Trump for his work during his first term in persuading alliance countries to increase their defense spending.

In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he had no information about whether Putin wanted to congratulate Trump, but stressed that Moscow viewed the United States as an “unfriendly” country.

Peskov reiterated the Kremlin's claim that U.S. support for Ukraine amounts to its involvement in the conflict, telling reporters: “Let us not forget that we are talking about the unfriendly country that is both directly and indirectly involved in a war against Ukraine.” our state is involved.”

Nevertheless, he noted Trump's promise to quickly end the war after his election.

“The United States can help end the conflict,” Peskov said, adding that “this certainly cannot happen overnight.”

___

Konovalov reported from the Kharkiv region. Associated Press journalist Lorne Cook in Brussels; Hanna Arhirova, Illia Novikov and Volodymyr Yurchuk in Kiev, Ukraine; Danica Kirka in London; and Dasha Litvinova in Tallinn, Estonia, contributed to this report.

___

Follow AP's coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine