Amid heightened concerns among supporters of Ukraine that the new administration of Donald Trump will reduce US support for Kiev, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken is making a surprise visit to Brussels where he will participate in meetings with European officials.

At the same time, both the Biden administration and NATO officials also fear that Donald Trump may try to undermine the military alliance and even seek to withdraw the United States from it.

The State Department said in its statement that Blinken will meet with his NATO and EU counterparts “to discuss supporting Ukraine in its defense against Russian aggression.”

In a clear message to US President-elect Donald Trump, NATO chief Mark Rutte has warned that Russia’s war against Ukraine is a security threat to the United States.

“Russia is getting closer and closer to its allies Iran, North Korea and China… It threatens not only Europe, but also the Indo-Pacific and North America,” Rutte said, speaking ahead of a bilateral meeting with the French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris.

It is not the first time since Trump’s re-election that Rutte has emphasized that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a security issue for both the US and the world. Last week, he said North Korea’s involvement threatens the Indo-Pacific region.

European heads of government are seeking to persuade Trump to continue aid to Ukraine against Russia, as the US president-elect – a staunch NATO skeptic – could end military aid, disengage the US from Europe and to focus on China.

Over the weekend, his son, Donald Trump Jr., mocked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for “losing his allowance.”
And while Trump’s name was not mentioned at the meeting in Paris, Rutte and Macron’s statements were indirect messages to the incoming US president.

The NATO Secretary General referred to Iran and China, two countries that Trump opposes, noting that Russia’s sharing of missile technology with North Korea could pose an “immediate threat” to the U.S. “We must we are united… In this way, we must keep our transatlantic alliance strong,” he stressed.

French President Emmanuel Macron pointed out that Ukraine, Europe and NATO must be ensured to remain “strong”.

In fact, in an indirect message to Trump, who claimed in his election campaign that he could end Russia’s war in a day, the French president said that “nothing will be decided about Ukraine without the Ukrainians, nor about Europe without the Europeans”.

In a sign of the apparent anxiety, US reports say the Biden administration plans to rush the latest $6 billion aid package to Ukraine before Donald Trump’s inauguration.

According to the same sources, this is the only option the White House has to continue sending equipment to Ukraine to counter the ongoing Russian attacks.

However, it remains unclear whether it could help Ukraine on the battlefield as military equipment will arrive in the country after months.

The aid package, therefore, likely won’t arrive in full until Trump takes office, who could stop the shipments before they reach Ukraine.