Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has expressed hope that Democratic gains in the United States midterm elections will bring more help for Kyiv, as European officials urged the new US Congress to ramp up pressure on Russia to end Europe’s bloodiest conflict since World War II. Zelenskyy’s comments on Wednesday came after American voters rebuked US President Donald Trump and his Republican Party, handing control of both the Senate and the House of Representatives to the Democratic Party. In an interview with German broadcaster ZDF, Zelenskyy said the Democratic gains could work to Ukraine’s advantage.
Zelenskyy has worked to repair a rocky relationship with Trump since an Oval Office meeting in February 2025 at which the US president accused his Ukrainian counterpart of being “ungrateful” for Washington’s aid. In recent weeks, Trump has made several moves favourable to Russia, including a deal to import Russian diesel. Last month, he waived sanctions on Russia that Congress had overwhelmingly approved as part of legislation supporting Ukraine.
Ukraine has also accused Washington of delaying deliveries of interceptor missiles. Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, said she hoped the new Congress would “continue supporting Ukraine and also putting more pressure on Russia”. In Germany, leaders were divided.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed scepticism on Wednesday that Trump would change course despite the Democrats’ sweeping victory. Why should that be any different now?” Merz said at an event in Berlin, a day after US voters handed Republicans a historic defeat. His foreign minister, Johann Wadephul, was more hopeful.
He said the “very clear” Democratic victory could create “a new opportunity to launch a fresh initiative” to end the wars in Ukraine and Iran. He added that he was “quite optimistic” that aid to Ukraine, which has been slashed under Trump, would get “more discussion” from US lawmakers of both parties. Others in Europe cautioned that with Trump in office for two more years, Washington’s foreign policy was unlikely to change quickly.
The US president has berated European leaders, roiled their economies with tariffs, threatened to pull the US out of NATO, and said he wants to take over Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of Denmark. Democratic aides have told US media that helping Kyiv would be a priority when the party takes control of the congressional agenda in January. But diplomacy is moving faster.
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