Ukraine is bogged down in the Russia-Ukraine war, and Western support is dwindling. Ukrainian ** Zelensky ran around looking for foreign aid, but was given a cold shoulder by the United States and the European Union. Zelensky has had to face the harsh reality that Ukraine has lost the favor of the West and the strength to resist Russia.
After attending the inauguration ceremony of Argentina's new ** Milley on the 10th, Zelensky rushed to the United States, hoping to persuade the U.S. Congress to pass an aid bill to provide Ukraine with $61.4 billion (about 438 billion yuan) in funds for Ukraine. However, the US Congress announced that it would be on leave from the 15th until January 9 next year, during which no issues related to Ukraine would be discussed.
This was a big setback for Biden, who submitted the bill to Congress in October but was rejected by the House of Representatives in early November. Biden also showed strong confidence at the time, claiming to firmly support Ukraine, and warned Congress not to obstruct it, but in a key Senate vote on December 6, the bill was rejected again!
Republicans in the United States, who have controlled the majority in the House of Representatives since January this year, have never agreed to any aid to Ukraine. Of the $111 billion in aid funds previously approved by the U.S. Congress, there are now less than $1 billion left.
In the face of such a dilemma, Biden even expressed his willingness to make compromises in exchange for the support of Republicans, but Republicans did not give him any face. Biden has nothing to do but say to Zelensky that he can only support him for a while.
Biden's troubles don't stop there, on the 13th, the Republican-dominated Senate passed a resolution agreeing to launch a formal ** investigation against Biden! Although it is almost impossible to succeed in this ** investigation, it will cause difficulties for Biden's re-election!
Zelensky only got $200 million in consolation money from Biden and left the United States on the 13th. Zelensky returned empty-handed and did not dare to return to his country to face the people, so he had to go to Norway, hoping to get the support of the five Nordic countries. On the 14th, the EU will hold a summit, which will mainly discuss Ukraine's accession to the EU and aid to Ukraine of 50 billion euros (about 389 billion yuan)!
In the past few days, Zelensky has traveled almost all over the world, but he has not received much substantial help! And on the eve of the EU summit, he also received a barrage of "bad news"!
On the one hand, Ukraine's accession to the European Union has been hampered, and in addition to the opposition of Hungary and Slovakia, Austria has joined the opposition camp. The Austrian Chancellor said on the 11th that Ukraine cannot enjoy any special treatment if it wants to become a member of the European Union. In the current situation, Austria will not agree to enter into accession negotiations with Ukraine.
If Ukraine wants to join the EU, it needs the unanimous consent of the EU's 27 member states, but the Hungarian prime minister has made it clear that he will not let the EU make mistakes and open negotiations on Ukraine's accession. Three Member States had already objected. This means that there is almost no hope for Ukraine to join the EU, and it is difficult to even start accession negotiations, which gives Turkey, which has been waiting for decades, a little comfort!
On the other hand, the EU's 50 billion euros in aid to Ukraine is also facing difficulties, because the economies of European countries are sluggish, and the United States has taken away their money, which makes the countries that previously supported Ukraine hesitate. Spain, for its part, has said that while it fully supports Ukraine, the EU may not have enough money. In other words, the EU is deliberately powerless!
Even if there is enough money in the EU, there are different voices within the EU! Because the new aid of 50 billion euros to Ukraine needs the consent of all 27 member states, and Hungary is the strongest opponent. In order to persuade Hungary, the EU also wants to give Hungary a "benefit fee" of 10 billion euros (about 77 billion yuan).
But this 10 billion euros was originally what Hungary deserved, just because Hungary has always opposed the EU's continued assistance to Ukraine, and was withheld by the EU under an excuse to force Hungary to submit! However, Hungary not only did not give in, but also opposed sanctions against Russia, which made it difficult for the EU to promote aid to Ukraine.
The EU is still considering that if the 50 billion aid cannot be passed, the EU will ask other member states that support Ukraine to formulate a new aid plan, that is, outside the EU budget, these countries will aid Ukraine by donating, but the feasibility of this plan is also very low!
Because the Russian-Ukrainian war has lasted for nearly two years, the best treasury of European countries has been depleted, military spending has also increased, the economy is not good, and the financial pressure is very great. Even Germany, Europe's largest economy, has fallen into a technical recession this year, and the situation is even worse in other countries! To put it simply, the European countries no longer have extra money and no extra hearts to continue to support Ukraine!
Ukraine's own fiscal situation is also very bad, with a total budget of more than $92 billion in 2024, of which more than $44 billion is spent on the military, but next year's fiscal revenue will be only $48.7 billion.
How long can Ukraine hold out in such a situation? Can you still die for NATO and the United States and sacrifice the vitality of Ukraine for their interests?
And Ukraine's performance on the battlefield has also disappointed the West. Not only did the Ukrainian army not achieve any results, but it was constantly repelled by the Russian army. The Russian army has taken full control of the two ** regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, and is also launching an offensive into the rest of Ukraine.
Ukraine has lost the support of the West and the strength to resist Russia. Zelensky's rush can only be exchanged for some empty checks and consolation prizes. The future of Ukraine has fallen into darkness.