"Take seriously, not literally": What Trump's statements mean for Ukraine and U.S. allies - Sergey Fursa

Denmark is transferring all its available weapons to Ukraine. This is because it is a NATO member, and in case of an incident, the USA will provide protection.

Trump: Give us Greenland. I need it.

The United Kingdom has been the most active supporter of Ukraine since the beginning of the war, pushing allies forward.

Musk: Let’s throw the British politicians in the trash; they have some interesting pro-Russian fascists there. Let them be, and we’ll make Britain part of the USA.

Canada has always maintained a radical pro-Ukrainian stance, being the first to support sanctions against Russia.

Trump: The Canadians dream of becoming the 51st state of the USA.

It’s just unclear what Panama has to do with this...

Seriously, this all looks horrifying for now. The only hope is that what Trump says often remains just that—words. As diplomats often say, Trump should be taken seriously, not literally. However, people frequently interpret him literally rather than seriously.

Nevertheless, it’s very hard to ignore this. It’s very difficult to overlook when the elected president of the USA repeats Russian propaganda regarding Ukraine’s NATO membership. It’s tough to disregard when the leader of the strongest nation in the world, which guarantees or at least attempts to maintain world order since World War II, states that he does not rule out using force against allies to annex parts of territory that are crucial for their security. By the way, Putin once spoke about Crimea like that. However, it’s challenging to ignore when Trump’s closest billionaire associate and the wealthiest person in the world interferes in the political processes of key European countries, promoting fascist pro-Russian parties.

This is already a new reality. And a world that may, at some point, become indifferent to supporting Ukraine...

Ukrainians have heavily criticized Biden, often from the standpoint of “we are owed everything.” They forget not only that no one owes us anything but also that without the support of the global West, we could not have held out against Russia. This support was organized precisely by the President of the USA, who managed to unite a world that had become quite fragmented after Trump’s presidency and to present a unified position. Now we say that if anything happens, Europe will help us. But this European assistance was primarily made possible through Biden's active efforts.

And what now?

Now, the dream of the Chinese and Russians is being realized in real-time. The USA verbally attacks its closest allies, undermining that unity. Yes, for now, it’s just words. But words also have power. And while you cannot build a wall at the border with words, you can erect walls of mistrust between close individuals or allies.

And how can we ignore this? Meanwhile, it’s very hard to understand what the objective of Trump’s actions is. There seems to be some acceptable logical goal. In such moments, it’s difficult not to lean towards conspiracy theories. The sheer uncertainty and chaos beg your mind to find a simple and rational explanation. But there isn’t one. It would be a very entertaining series exceeding expectations in the new season if we lived somewhere in New Zealand and watched it as spectators, with beer and popcorn. But unfortunately, we have long ceased to be mere spectators.