On 15 August US President Trump and Russian President Putin met in Alaska for high-profile talks on the NATO-Russia proxy war in Ukraine. Although there were no specific outcomes, the meeting showed the Trump administration’s willingness to negotiate Russian demands for Ukrainian territory to achieve a settlement. It followed six months of negotiations between the US and Russia on how they will carve up Ukraine between themselves. Ukraine, Britain and the other European imperialist powers were excluded from the discussions. Whilst US imperialism is for now attempting to assert its interests in Ukraine diplomatically, European imperialism is escalating military aggression to assert its own, exposing divisions between the two.
Three days later, the leaders of Britain, France, Germany and Italy hurried to Washington along with Ukrainian President Zelensky for a meeting with Trump. Their aim was to press the US into applying more sanctions on Russia and restrain it from accepting Russian demands for Ukrainian territory.
EU turns up anti-Russian hostility
Europe’s major imperialists are leading the military buildup against Russia.The war in Ukraine has solidified Russia as a major rival to European imperialism. As we go to press, polls predict Moldova’s pro-EU Party of Action and Solidarity will lose its parliamentary majority in elections on 28 September, allowing the pro-Russian Patriotic Electoral Bloc to form a government and block Moldova’s EU accession. European politicians and media decried ‘Russian meddling’ in the run up to the Moldovan elections. Russia is a fetter on EU expansion to the east.
Other recent elections between pro-EU and pro-Russian parties have taken place in Georgia and Romania. In Georgia during 2024, the government put forward a bill to regulate foreign influence by creating a special registry to monitor politically active foreign-funded organisations, many of which are Western-funded. The US and EU condemned it, and there were huge demonstrations in opposition. Despite this, the EU tried to preserve Georgia’s position as a candidate member. However, the September 2024 general election resulted in a landslide victory for a Pro-Russian alliance, a defeat for EU interests. In Romania, already an EU member, the May 2025 general election went the way of the pro-EU candidate, much to the relief of the major EU powers.
EU and US at loggerheads
The Trump administration wants to curtail European imperialism’s ambitions, and that is why the US is prepared to concede to some Russian aspirations. This ‘soft approach’ also aims to cut off the deepening partnership between Russia and China.
Trump is constantly applying political pressure to European imperialism by exploiting EU divisions. On 13 September Trump demanded European nations stop importing Russian oil. However, the remaining EU importers are Hungary and Slovakia, both of which have Russia-aligned governments, and which frequently exploit EU unanimity rules to veto sanctions on Russia to extract concessions. As a result, on 19 September the EU Commission released €550m in funding to Hungary to secure its support for a 19th EU sanctions package on Russia. Meanwhile Trump is ensuring Europe’s NATO members foot the bill for arming Ukraine: on 28 August the US announced a $825mn weapons package which Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway will pay for and then transfer to Ukraine.
However, the US approach is a contradictory one. Conceding too much to Russia undermines the US’s post-war role as a perceived guarantor of European security. This risks driving allies it has cultivated in Eastern Europe since the collapse of the socialist bloc into the arms of the European imperialists. This is evident in the conflict between Trump and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk: Poland has been a major US ally for 30 years, spearheading US interests in Eastern Europe. On 7 March Tusk announced exploring a partnership with France to develop a Polish nuclear arsenal. He cited ‘a profound change of American geopolitics’ as justification. Tusk, a former president of the European Council, has been a belligerent opponent of Russia since his election as prime minister in 2023. However, he is opposed by Karol Nawrocki, who was elected president in June. He is a Trump supporter who opposes a federal Europe and Ukraine’s entry to NATO and the EU.
Confronting Russia
British and European imperialism have formed the ‘coalition of the willing’ to confront Russia and frustrate US aims. The coalition is led principally by Britain, France and Germany. The coalition seeks to keep a militarised Ukrainian proxy intact following a settlement of the war. It has pledged to station British and European troops in Ukraine following a settlement. On 15 August British defence secretary John Healey reiterated this, saying the Labour government is ‘ready to put UK boots on the ground’ following a ceasefire.
This is a red line for Russia, which has repeatedly stated it would treat NATO troops in Ukraine as military targets. Putin confirmed this on 5 September, saying: ‘if some troops appear there, especially now, during military operations … these will be legitimate targets for destruction’. The warmongering Labour government is aware of this but is proceeding undeterred. When interviewed, Healey said: ‘any British forces have the right to defend themselves if attacked’.
Germany is also preparing for such a confrontation. On 22 May Germany announced a permanent military presence in Lithuania, bordering Russia, to reach 5,000 personnel by 2027. This is the first permanent overseas German military presence since Nazi rule. Meanwhile, Germany continues to rearm at a pace not seen since the buildup to the Second World War, aiming to spend €650bn on its military across the five years 2026-30.
Whilst Britain and the European imperialists continue the military buildup, Russia is ratcheting up its aggression in Ukraine. On 28 August, it launched the deadliest air assault on Ukraine since July, killing 23 and indirectly damaging both the EU and British Council offices in Kiev, prompting belligerent British and European condemnation.
On 9 September Poland reported shooting down Russian drones over its air space. Romania and Estonia subsequently reported brief incursions of Russian drones and fighter jets on 13 and 19 September respectively. All three countries are NATO members. On 22 September NATO member Denmark closed its Copenhagen airport due to drone sightings. Britain and the other European imperialists immediately blamed Russia. The pro-imperialist Guardian ran the headline: ‘Is Copenhagen drone incursion further evidence of Russian interest in allied airspace?’ without the slightest evidence. Later that day, newly-appointed Labour foreign secretary Yvette Cooper, keen to demonstrate the aggression requisite for the role, threatened to shoot down Russian jets: ‘If we need to confront planes operating in NATO airspace without permission, we will’. As Britain and the other European imperialist powers ratchet up their war talk, they risk a direct confrontation between NATO and Russia.
George O’Connell
FRFI 308 October/November 2025
