The unfortunate reality about US support for Ukraine

Pranked by a Kremlin-friendly comedy duo, Italy’s Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, spoke for many when she confessed her ‘fatigue’ with the war in Ukraine. But there is some bad news for all the Europeans ‘tired’ of the conflict. Europe’s real job will only begin when the current war of attrition eventually congeals along more or less static lines, with or without a formal armistice. 

The task ahead will not only involve physical reconstruction, budget support, or bringing Ukraine closer to EU membership. Much more importantly, it will involve guaranteeing the stability of whatever formal or informal settlement arises from the war. 

The unfortunate reality is that US assistance to Ukraine is becoming an increasingly tougher political sell, especially under the leadership of the new Speaker of the House of Representatives, arch-MAGA Republican Mike Johnson. Even if most of the US’s military ‘aid’ to Ukraine is spent in the United States replenishing the Pentagon’s arsenal with new US-made weapons systems, the world would be lucky to see even one modest supplemental bill actually intended for Ukraine between now and the end of the current congress.