US President Donald Trump has described Europe as decaying and weak on immigration and Ukraine, deepening a rift between the United States and some of its oldest allies.
Trump made this statement in an interview published Tuesday on Politico, calling on war-battered Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky to hold elections despite Russia’s invasion and said that Moscow had the “upper hand.”
The president’s remarks are said to have doubled down on extraordinary criticism of top US partners in his administration’s new national security strategy last week.
“Most European nations, they’re decaying. They want to be politically correct, and it makes them weak. That’s what makes them weak,” Trump said.
The 79-year old also lashed out at European nations over Ukraine after the escalating differences over the plan of the US to end the war that many in Europe fear will force Kyiv to hand over territory to Russia.
European leaders have been reportedly making attempts to woo Trump since his second return to the White House on January 20, particularly on maintaining US support for Ukraine against Russia.
His interview with the Politico would intensify the alarm in European capitals, which was triggered by the US security strategy last week, with its calls for cultivating resistance in Europe on migration and warnings of so-called civilizational erasure.
Ukraine: Europe weak, decaying – Trump
