On June 24, 2025, President Donald Trump shocked his European allies by posting on Truth Social that Ukraine can “fight and win back its land with the help of the EU.” Signed “Good luck to all!” the message went on to call on Europe to back Kyiv wholeheartedly. It followed several months of Trump relentlessly urging Ukraine to strike a deal with Moscow by relinquishing the territories it had taken over, notably a heated February Oval Office confrontation with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
European diplomats, describing it as a “spectacular” turnaround but doubting that it is a blame-shifting tactic, told it in off-the-record talks. “Trump wants to avoid making it his war,” said Carlo Masala of Bundeswehr University Munich.
Officials fear Trump’s words set an “impossible mission” for Europe, allowing him to fault the EU if Ukraine struggles or runs out of cash. “This is the start of a blame game,” one official said, noting U.S. awareness that EU tariffs on China and India—Russia’s top energy buyers—would fail due to Hungary’s Viktor Orbán blocking them. Trump’s demands for Europe to halt Russian oil and gas imports, while the U.S. does little, feel like a handover. A European aide said Trump is “building the off-ramp” to blame Europe, viewing the war as “Biden’s” after nine months in office.
French President Emmanuel Macron, after a bilateral meeting with Trump in New York on June 24, 2025, called the stance “very correct” and saw an opportunity in Russia’s economic pain from sanctions. “If we back Ukraine fully, there’s a path to peace,” Macron said. The term “High bar” was the one that came up most often in the statements of German officials after President Trump’s departure, while some of them thought that he was no longer a dependable ally.
To reduce tensions, the EU, France, Germany, and the U.K. are all trying to move closer to Tehran. Nevertheless, Trump’s UN General Assembly speech was no help to the talks, as he called for a 100% tariff on India and China, which Brussels considered a “non-starter.”
Trump’s frustration with Putin has grown since their Alaska summit, with threats of consequences if Russia skips peace talks. Yet, he’s imposed no new costs on Moscow, periodically blaming Zelenskyy. His emphasis on European energy imports—specifically, Hungary and Slovakia’s oil and France’s LNG—underscores the double standards, as U.S. LNG exports to Europe increased by 20% in 2025. Expressing doubt about Trump’s dependability in combined initiatives, Liana Fix from Foreign Relations said that she believed he would not follow through.
The White House did not respond to the query, but Trump’s “Good luck” conclusion appeared as a brief message to the administration. The continent, which has been supporting most of the Ukrainian aid ($100 billion since 2022, compared to the U.S.’s $60 billion), is concerned that it will be accused if the negotiations break down or the Kremlin moves at its own pace. Trump is going off.
Since Europe might view Trump as prioritizing its country’s interests over shared responsibilities, such a shift in perspective would likely have a significant impact on the transatlantic connection.
