President Donald Trump’s handling of the Ukraine situation has been a subject of interest, with many predicting he would give in to Russian demands. However, his administration has been patient and kept lines of communication with both Kyiv and Moscow open, spending more time on Ukraine than any other issue to date.

Ukraine’s Progress

Ukraine has started to claw back some of the territory Russia took in Donbas in the early days of the war. Reports from inside Russia are increasingly pessimistic about Putin’s chances for victory. The Trump-Zelenskyy relationship has also seen progress, with Ukraine dramatically accelerating the development and production of long-range attack drones that can penetrate deep into Russian territory.

The Ukrainian campaign against Russian energy infrastructure and high-end military assets such as strategic bombers and warships has been a strong success. Since Trump took office, U.S. military aid to Ukraine has continued, with a recent bill authorizing an additional $1.3 billion in military assistance to Ukraine, as well as an additional $8 billion in long-term loans for military purchases.

NATO and Europe’s Defense

Trump has committed $1.5 trillion to the biggest U.S. military budget in history, and the large NATO economies need to follow suit to send the message to Putin that he cannot compete with NATO’s strength. The upcoming NATO Summit in Ankara, Turkey, will be a welcome opportunity for the alliance to build on this progress by redoubling their efforts to have Europe take the lead on Europe’s defenses.

Original reporting: Fox News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.