Mart Kuldkepp ⟩ Campaigning in the US is taking place at the cost of Ukrainian lives

Donald Trump (left) and President Joe Biden (right). Photo: TANNEN MAURY / AFP

• The question of Ukraine has become an internal political weapon in quite a few countries.
• Supporting Ukraine is in the national interests of the US.

In the democratic world, 2024 can be considered a major election year, since almost half of the global population has headed or is heading to the ballot boxes, historian Mart Kuldkepp writes.

At such a time, the sharpened politicization of various issues is inevitable, and unfortunately, the issue of supporting Ukraine has also become an internal political weapon in quite a few of these elections, which illiberally minded candidates have tried to use to attack the ruling political forces.

Depending on the peculiarities of the electoral system, they do not always succeed, of course. Evidence of this can be found in the recent British elections, after which another one of Nigel Farage's parties, Reform UK, had to settle for just a few parliamentary seats, and the French elections, where Marine Le Pen's National Rally was outplayed by the rest of the political forces in the second round of the elections.

However, a potential opposite example may be the presidential elections of the United States, in which the presidential and vice-presidential candidates of the Republican Party clearly represent an anti-Ukrainian and, in fact, anti-European attitude. It's worth remembering that the latter, at least, is not a new phenomenon in US politics, even if it did mostly languish in the second half of the 20th century.

The propaganda machines of isolationists are currently working at full speed in order to deepen the feelings of surrender as much as possible and to portray helping Ukraine even at the current level as an overwhelming task for the US. At the same time, it must be remembered that in the conditions of political polarization there, there are relatively few so-called swing voters, and it is not certain whether the rhetoric emphasizing the helplessness and limited resources of the US is sufficiently convincing for them.

At least as much effort must definitely be made to undermine the fighting morale of the Democrats and create the conditions for a so-called self-fulfilling prophecy of impending defeat. Everything possible, whether it be Biden's failed televised debate or an assassination attempt against Trump under confusing circumstances, will be used to serve this goal.

The propaganda machines of isolationists are currently working at full speed in order to deepen the feelings of surrender as much as possible and to portray helping Ukraine even at the current level as an overwhelming task for the US.

At the same time, the new allies of the Republicans include some former startup entrepreneurs who got rich in the IT and technical sector and who think that they should have a say in US foreign policy in the same way as the world-famous aviator Charles Lindbergh or the car magnate Henry Ford during World War II. They will likely also be remembered with about the same good words in the future.

The aid package, which only recently became stuck in the US Congress for half a year, is a vivid example of what all this can lead to on the front lines. At the same time, Europe's ability to compensate for the US’ self-isolation until politics on the other side of the Atlantic change again is doubtful. So, there is no serious alternative to US support, at least in the short term, but this of course does not mean that one should not prepare for possible disruptions or a complete interruption of aid.

All in all, there is no doubt that supporting Ukraine is in the national interests of the US, but accepting this knowledge and, if necessary, re-acknowledging it is a painful and lengthy process, which will probably open up various opportunities for Russia to start implementing at the cost of Ukrainian lives.