The US is “destroying” the current world order, Ukraine’s ambassador to the United Kingdom has said, in unusually blunt comments that come just as Ukraine is trying to patch up ties with the US after the disastrous White House meeting between Volodymyr Zelensky and Donald Trump.
Valerii Zaluzhnyi, who was dismissed as Ukraine’s military chief last year in a major shake up before taking up the diplomatic post and is seen as a possible presidential candidate, also cautioned against the US trying to meet Russia “half way.”
In the wake of the angry exchange in Washington DC, the US halted military aid to Ukraine and paused intelligence sharing, underscoring fears in Kyiv that the Trump administration was swinging behind Russia.
“It’s not just the ‘axis of evil’ and Russia trying to revise the world order, but the US is finally destroying this order,” Zaluzhnyi said, speaking on a panel at British think tank Chatham House on Thursday.
Zaluzhnyi said that the US government had “questioned” the unity of the Western world, with the Trump administration opening talks with Russia, sidelining Ukraine and Europe.
“Now Washington is trying to delegate the security issues to Europe without participation of the US,” he said.
He cast doubt over the future of the NATO military alliance, saying; “We can say that in the near future NATO likewise could stop existing.”
“We see now the White House takes steps towards the Kremlin, trying to meet them half way, so the next target of Russia could be Europe,” he added.
His words come as Europe has been scrambling to sure up its defense capabilities after Donald Trump’s dramatic reversal of US policies sparked fears that Europe may not be able to rely on American support amid the ever-present threat from Russia.
Ukraine’s European allies have rallied around Zelensky following the showdown between him and Trump in the Oval Office, which culminated in the Ukrainian leader being thrown out of the White House.
Since then, Zelensky has sought to ease tensions with the Trump administration, saying that the fiery meeting “did not go the way it was supposed to,” describing it as “regrettable” and noting that Ukraine is ready to negotiate about an end to the conflict.
European leaders have meanwhile been gathering for an emergency summit in Brussels on Thursday, where they have been reiterating their support for Ukraine while seeking a seat at the negotiating table.