How U.S. Aid To Ukraine and Russia Changed From Biden To Trump

TOPSHOT – (COMBO) This combination of pictures created on September 29, 2020 shows Democratic Presidential candidate and former US Vice President Joe Biden (L) and US President Donald Trump speaking during the first presidential debate at the Case Western Reserve University and Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio on September 29, 2020. (Photo by JIM WATSON and SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSONSAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

AFP via Getty Images

On Friday, President Donald Trump traveled to Alaska to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. During their summit, they discussed the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. They did not reach an agreement on how the war should end.

Absent from the summit were Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as well as representatives from the European Union and NATO. This was a noticeable shift in American foreign policy, where the U.S. previously coordinated all discussions on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine with its European allies and Ukraine.

How have U.S. relations with Ukraine and Russia changed throughout the Russo-Ukraine war?

U.S. Relations with Ukraine and Russia Under Biden

When the Russian Federation launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, then-President Joe Biden told Zelenskyy that the United States and its allies would “support the Ukrainian people as they defend their country.” As the war progressed, Biden promised to “never walk away from Ukraine.”

Biden then took action. From February 2022 to December 2024, the Biden administration provided nearly $200 billion in aid to Ukraine. This ranged from weapons and defense equipment to medical devices, humanitarian assistance, and financial aid.

These forms of American assistance, combined with aid from other countries around the world, saw Ukraine successfully force the Russians out of northern and central Ukraine. Additionally, the U.S. Department of State and U.S. Agency for International Development worked with Ukrainian officials to help Ukraine reform its government. This work allowed Ukraine to gain EU candidate status.

Outside of these efforts, Biden would speak with Zelenskyy on several occasions to discuss Russia’s ongoing invasion. The U.S. government would share intelligence with Ukraine to assist Ukrainian forces in their fight against Russia’s invasion. Biden would also meet with leaders from Congress to propose new aid packages and other forms of assistance to Ukraine.

While the U.S. was slow on some occasions to provide aid to Ukraine, and although there were restrictions on how Ukrainian forces could use American aid, the Biden administration eventually continued to increase aid. Biden also continuously stated that the U.S. would stand with Ukraine “for as long as it takes.” Finally, he argued that there could not be peace in Ukraine without Ukrainian representation, and that negotiations to end the war could only be conducted on Ukraine’s terms.

Biden and his administration also worked closely with America’s allies and partners to form an international coalition to support Ukraine. Nearly 80 countries from around the world have come together to provide hundreds of billions of dollars in aid to Ukraine. This foreign assistance has helped Ukraine repel Russia’s ongoing invasion.

An International Coalition to Support Ukraine

The international coalition has also condemned Russia’s invasion. For example, a United Nations resolution adopted by 141 countries demanded that Russia “immediately, completely, and unconditionally withdraw” its forces from Ukraine. Additionally, the Russian Federation was suspended from the UN Human Rights Council.

Aside from these condemnations at the UN, dozens of countries have worked together to impose stiff penalties on Russia to punish it for its war. For example, the U.S., the United Kingdom, the EU, NATO, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and several other countries have collaborated to impose sanctions on Russian corporations and energy companies. Over 1,000 international companies terminated their operations in Russia. The Russian Federation was banned from organizations such as the Parliamentary Assembly for the Council of Europe, FIFA, and UEFA. Russian business owners and politicians were barred from entering Western countries, and hundreds of billions of dollars of Russian assets were frozen or seized.

The work done by Biden and his administration saw the world unite against the Russian Federation as it condemned the invasion of Ukraine. In addition, coordinated sanctions saw the Russian Federation lose billions of dollars. Finally, the Russians sustained significant casualties during the war. This occurred without the loss of a single life of an active duty American servicemember.

Although Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues, U.S. policies undertaken by Biden and his administration suggest that the U.S. would continue to help Ukraine. American government officials, as well as their counterparts from several countries around the world, also refused to meet with Putin and Russian representatives. This further underlined the globe’s condemnation of Russia’s war.

U.S. Relations with Ukraine and Russia Under Trump

Now, as of August, the U.S. approach toward Ukraine and Russia has changed. While Biden stated that the U.S. would provide aid to Ukraine “for as long as it takes,” Trump has taken a different approach. During the 2024 U.S. presidential election campaign, Trump argued that the United States was providing too much aid to Ukraine. He added that Ukraine should have “given up a little bit” of territory to Russia.

Trump continued this stance following the U.S. election and his inauguration in January. During the initial weeks of his new administration, Trump said that it was “unlikely” that Ukraine would reclaim territory taken by Russia. Additionally, Trump told the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Department of State to stop aid shipments to Ukraine. The U.S. also paused intelligence sharing with Ukraine.

Since these events in March, the U.S. has lifted the freeze on aid to Ukraine. As of July, the Trump administration reinstated defense aid shipments to Ukraine. A pause on intelligence sharing has also been lifted. In addition, the U.S. has sold weapons to NATO members, who then sent them to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

While Trump changed his stance on aid to Ukraine, the U.S. has continued to push for a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia. These attempts have been unsuccessful. Several reports by Reuters and the Kyiv Independent found that the Russian Federation violated ceasefire agreements proposed by the United States despite continued negotiations between U.S. and Russian officials. These meetings from February to August have not resulted in an end to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. A ceasefire has yet to be reached and fully implemented. Trump also make this clear after his summit with Putin in Alaska, where he said that “there’s no deal [to end the war] until there’s a deal.”

Despite a breakthrough in peace negotiations, Trump and senior officials from his administration have continued to speak to their Russian counterparts. These phone calls and in-person meetings have been conducted without Ukrainian or European representatives. In response, Ukrainian and European officials have expressed concerns, believing that Trump may decide the future of Ukraine and Europe without Ukrainian and European representatives. This policy differs starkly from that of the Biden administration, which I campaigned for in 2020 and met with as part of the Ukrainian-Americans for Biden initiative from 2021 to 2024.

In short, the U.S. approach toward Ukraine and Russia during the Russo-Ukraine war. Initially, the U.S. severed its communication with the Russian Federation. The Americans maintained constant dialogue with Europe and Ukraine, and the U.S. was fully committed to sending aid to Ukraine. Now, the U.S. has pushed for an immediate end to the war. There is also uncertainty about how willing the U.S. will be to continue aiding Ukraine while trying to force negotiations with Russia.

No one is certain how the Russian invasion of Ukraine will end. But for now, the international community will continue to monitor how U.S. officials will engage with their Ukrainian and Russian counterparts as they look to find a way to end the war.

Disclaimer: Mark Temnycky was a volunteer member of the Steering Committee for Ukrainian-Americans for Biden, a network within the Democratic National Committee’s Ethnic Coordinating Council. In this capacity, he campaigned for the Biden-Harris ticket during the 2020 U.S. presidential election. In addition, he was invited to discuss U.S.-Ukraine, U.S.-NATO, and U.S.-Russia relations with senior officials from the White House, National Security Council, U.S. Department of Defense, and U.S. Department of State from November 2021 to March 2024.