On Ukraine's front and in Kyiv, hope and pragmatism compete when it comes to Trump's election

KYIV, Ukraine -

Soldiers in a Ukrainian artillery battery on the front lines in the country’s east were only vaguely aware Wednesday of American election results pointing to Donald Trump’s victory. But they were firm in their hopes for the next president of the United States.

Their entrenched artillery battery fires on Russian forces daily -- and takes fire nearly as often. Just the other day, one of their overhead nets snared a Russian drone.

"I hope that the quantity of weapons, the quantity of guns for our victory will increase," the unit's 39-year-old commander, who goes by the name Mozart, said in the hours before Trump's win was confirmed. "We don't care who is the president, as long as they don't cut us off from help, because we need it."

The soldiers, who use their Starlink connection to the internet sparingly, learned of the U.S. election results from Associated Press journalists.

Trump's election throws into doubt American support for Ukraine — and ultimately whether Kyiv can beat back Russia's invasion. But Mozart — who like other soldiers Wednesday did not give his name in keeping with Ukrainian military protocol — is among many Ukrainians who hope that Trump will hold the line on American support for their country. Russian forces have recently made gains in the east, although the commander described the front-line situation as “static."

Yurii Fedorenko, commander of a Ukrainian drone unit also in the Kharkiv region, wears an American flag patch on his uniform. He is keenly aware of how critical American support has been for Ukraine.

“Suppose I were told that there was some country across the ocean that I didn’t even know where it was, and that I had to pay money from my taxes to this country so that it could exist," said Fedorenko, whose call-sign is Achilles — the same name as his battalion. “I don’t know how I would react. Therefore, I really thank the Americans and I really believe that they have a good education system, because the vast majority of people understand why the United States helps third countries, and in particular now Ukraine.”

It was under Trump that the United States first sent weapons to Ukraine in its fight against Russia, in 2017. Those Javelin anti-tank missiles were crucial to Ukraine's ability to fend off the full-scale invasion in 2022. But Trump overall is wary of U.S. involvement in foreign conflicts.

Trump, who has touted his good relationship with President Vladimir Putin and called the Russian leader "pretty smart" for invading Ukraine, has repeatedly criticized American backing of Ukraine. He characterized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as "the greatest salesman on Earth" for winning U.S. aid.

Republican presidential nominee and U.S. President Donald Trump departs as son Barron Trump, left, and former first lady Melania Trump look on at an election night watch party, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Zelenskyy was among the first world leaders to publicly congratulate Trump and said the two discussed how to end "Russian aggression against Ukraine" when they met in September.

"I appreciate U.S. President Trump's commitment to the 'peace through strength' approach in global affairs. This is exactly the principle that can practically bring just peace in Ukraine closer. I am hopeful that we will put it into action together," he wrote on in a message on the social platform X.

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Trump has said repeatedly he would have a peace deal done between Ukraine and Russia within a day if elected, although he has not said how. During his debate with U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, he twice refused to directly answer a question about whether he wanted Ukraine to win -- raising concerns that Kyiv would be forced to accept unfavorable terms in any negotiations he oversaw.

In Kyiv, which comes under attack from Russian drones near daily, 18-year-old Viktoriia Zubrytska was pragmatic about her expectations for the next American president. She thinks Ukraine will be forced to give up territory in exchange for peace under a Trump presidency. But she said she preferred that to what she called the false hope that the Biden administration offered.

"We will live in a world of facts where we will be certain on what awaits us," said the law student. "Certainty and objective truth is much better than lies and life in illusions."

According to VoteCast, 74 per cent of voters who supported Harris favored continuing aid to Ukraine, while only 36 per cent of Trump’s voters did. AP VoteCast is a survey of the American electorate conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago.

On the front lines in Ukraine's eastern Kharkiv region, Andriy, who goes by “Rodych” or “Relative,” said Ukraine would "come up with something" no matter what happened in the U.S. vote.

"We will come up with something" whatever happens, he said.

"We are a shield between Europe and Russia," he added. "Other countries do not understand what is happening here, they see it on TV and for them it is far away."

America's NATO allies were also closely watching the election. France and Germany arranged a last-minute, top-level defence meeting Wednesday in Paris to discuss the results, and Ukraine is likely to be central to the meeting. The two leading powers in the European Union provide significant support to Ukraine to defend it against Russia's war.

A serviceman of the 13th Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine fires a Giatsint-B gun towards Russian positions near Kharkiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, citing a "more aggressive Russia," also invoked Trump's motto of "peace through strength."

Rutte praised Trump for his work during his first term to persuade countries in the alliance to ramp up defence spending.

In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he had no information on whether Putin plans to congratulate Trump, but he emphasized that Moscow views the U.S. as an “unfriendly” country. 

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Peskov reaffirmed the Kremlin’s claim that U.S. support for Ukraine amounted to involvement in the conflict, telling reporters: “Let’s not forget that we are talking about the unfriendly country that is both directly and indirectly involved in a war against our state.”Still, he noted Trump's promise to end the war swiftly once elected.

"The U.S. can help end the conflict," Peskov said, adding that "it certainly can't be done overnight."

In a rare agreement with the Kremlin, Fiona Hill, a former intelligence expert in the George W. Bush, Obama and Trump administrations, said it was increasingly clear that Europe had to step up its capacities.

“If Trump is saying, I’m going to sit down and resolve this in 24 hours, it’s highly unlikely that’s going to be the case,” Hill said in a podcast with the European Council on Foreign Relations a few days ahead of the election. “You can say the United States is going to stop supplying weapons, and you can hold everything out for leverage, but it’s not for the United States to do at this particular point. Because there are already other Europeans in the game in terms of assistance to the Ukraine.”

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Konovalov reported from the Kharkiv region. Associated Press journalists Lorne Cook in Brussels; Hanna Arhirova, Illia Novikov and Volodymyr Yurchuk in Kyiv, Ukraine; Danica Kirka in London; Dasha Litvinova in Tallinn, Estonia, and Ellen Knickmeyer in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.