By Athena Papakosta

Western support for Kiev, 19 months into the war, remains strong. However, the first cracks are beginning to appear.

As characteristically reported by the British news network BBC, Ukraine is now fighting on many different fronts. One of them is now the diplomatic one.

Last weekend the US Congress temporarily froze further military funding to Ukraine amounting to six billion dollars. For his part, the president of the United States, Joe Biden, is committed to standing by Kiev, but the Republican leader of the House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, warns that he will first make sure that “our borders are secure” and then “I will make sure that weapons are provided for Ukraine” making it clear that Kiev “is not going to get some big package”.

In 398 days from today the United States of America has an election and the country is already living in the rhythm of the pre-election period.

Right now in Washington, Republicans believe that support for Ukraine should be curtailed while others say it can continue as long as President Biden spends more on securing the US border. At this point it is worth recalling that the US has given Kiev $110 billion in military and economic aid since February 2022, while the US president has now promised a new package of $24 billion.

At the same time, things are not better for Volodymyr Zelensky in Europe either.

From Kiev and the informal meeting of EU foreign ministers, the EU’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, admits that “we are beginning to see Western fatigue” but, “despite the… fissures, the European Union remains united in favor of of Ukraine”.

As he explained, after the Synod, “this war has profound consequences all over the world, but for us Europeans it is an existential threat”. In this way, Mr. Borel chose to warn about the new data from Slovakia that are not at all encouraging for Kiev.

Last Saturday, the pro-Russian and populist Robert Fitzow won the country’s elections and is now preparing to form a government promising that Bratislava will not send a single bullet into Ukraine again.

Poland’s 180-degree turn has already been preceded by the Polish Prime Minister himself, Mateusz Morawiecki, a few days before crucial elections in the country, making it clear that Warsaw, too, is stopping supplying Ukrainians with arms.

Commenting on the developments, the Kremlin predicts that “fatigue from the conflict in Ukraine will increase in various countries”.

Analysts explain that Moscow has long been waiting to exhaust the West’s patience by prolonging its war in Ukraine until Kiev loses support from the international community and is forced into a political compromise.

“What is at stake in Ukraine is much bigger than the country. It is about the stability and predictability of the world”, explained the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Dmytro Kuleba, openly expressing Kiev’s concern.

According to experts, the Ukrainian side has already prepared for this unfavorable scenario. On the one hand, she knows that Donald Trump is lurking to return to the White House – a fact which could turn the tables – and on the other hand, she still remains cautious since she considers that her partners in the West could hardly succeed to come together in any compromises in the case of a political settlement in Ukraine.