President Donald Trump abruptly reversed course earlier this month when he decided to send Patriot missiles, along with other possibly offensive weaponry, to Ukraine, provided that European nations pay the United States for them. Trump also announced that he would place 100 per cent tariffs on Russia if, after 50 days, Russian President Vladimir Putin had failed to move to a ceasefire.
The shift irritated some on the American Right, who wish to see Europe do more on a war which directly affects them, but it pleased the Ukrainian government and pro-Ukrainian voices in the United States.
But for some in Europe, however, it was not enough. Kaja Kallas, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (as close as the EU gets to a “foreign minister”) complained about Trump’s decision, saying, “We would like to see the US to share the burden” [sic]. And Denmark’s foreign minister whined about the 50 day period, saying that it was “rather long.”
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