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HOUSE OF CARDS
Frustrated Ukrainian troops dub Biden’s exit from White House race a ‘bad comedy’ & fear fate of war is in the balance
Experts previously warned The Sun how dangerous a Trump win would be for Ukraine
UKRAINIAN forces fighting a bloody battle against Russian soldiers have slammed the political turmoil embroiling America 5,600 miles away.
From their trenches, Volodymyr Zelensky's troops are watching the chaos unfold in Washington after Joe Biden dramatically quit the White House race on Sunday.
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The US has long been embroiled in Vladimir Putin's illegal war in Ukraine.
It has served as a fundamental pillar of Western support both financially and when it comes to weapons for Zelensky's army.
Biden has pushed enormous aid packages for Ukraine through Congress but his former opponent, Donald Trump, is less inclined to help.
In February The Sun spoke to military experts who warned that a 2024 Trump win would be disastrous for Ukraine.
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Former British tank commander Colonel Hamish De Bretton-Gordon told The Sun that Europe "can't rely on the Americans, post November" for assistance if Trump wins the presidency on November 5.
Professor Anthony Glees, an intelligence expert from the University of Buckingham, told The Sun that Trump's "chaotic" leadership style is dangerous, and that he has all but invited Putin to spark World War 3.
Now troops on the ground in Ukraine have shared their fears with The Sun over a possible Trump win, and compared the political chaos in America to a "bad comedy".
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One artillery soldier, who goes by the code name Mad Hatter, said: "We are fighting for the people and their future; we are trying to concentrate on the cause, but of course we watch the news.
"The American presidential campaign looks like a TV show, like a bad comedy.
"We don’t know what to expect from Harris or Trump, the only thing that we can do is fight."
A previous poll by the Pew Research Center showed half of the Republican party, particularly those strongly aligned with Trump, say the US is giving too much aid to Ukraine.
Some Trump-leaning Republicans argue the US should focus more on pressing domestic issues, such as immigration and the US-Mexico border, than spending billions on the war in Europe.
And despite Trump's incredible claims that he could end the war in Ukraine in a single day, Russia's United Nations ambassador has insisted he can't.
An infantry soldier with the call sign "Dust" who fights in the Zaporizhzhia region told The Sun: "We cannot win this war without American help, but now it is enough only to avoid losing, not to win.
"We need aircraft, without air parity, we are powerless. We need permission to strike legitimate military targets on the territory of the Russian Federation.
"And the aid is too slow, soldiers are running out. Soon, there might be no one to be able to handle it.
"We need more and faster, The Armed Forces of Ukraine demonstrate every day what we can do with American weapons to outpower the intruders."
In April this year, Biden approved a military package worth almost £50 billion for Ukraine.
Air defence interceptors, artillery and vital long-range missiles were delivered to the frontline.
The US Department of Defence also promised rocket systems and anti-aircraft missiles.
During the two years after war broke out between February 2022 and February 2024, the US had sent weapons and equipment worth around £38 billion to Kyiv.
Trump has repeatedly hit back against such aid, and only days ago was presented two plans from key advisors on how to end the war - by forcing Ukraine to sit in on peace talks with its invaders.
The plans apparently giving Ukraine an ultimatum, US weapons in exchange for 'peace' talks with Putin, Reuters reports.
Ukrainian soldier "Dust" told The Sun: "If Trump comes, it's a 50-50. We will either be finished or the Russians will be finished.
"I am 100% certain that there will be significant changes, but it is not yet clear which side Trump will take.
"I heard that during his last talks with Zelensky on the phone, he said that the conflict would be resolved on Kyiv terms, Personally, I believe that Trump himself would like to take advantage of the situation.
"Reinforcing himself as a strong leader and returning the respect of the world and dominance as the most influential superpower to the United States."
JOE BIDEN'S STATEMENT IN FULL
US President Joe Biden has announced that he is no longer seeking re-election.
Here is his statement in full:
"My Fellow Americans, over the past three-and-a-half years, we have made great progress as a nation.
"Today, America has the strongest economy in the world. We've made historic investments in rebuilding our nation, in lowering prescription drug costs for seniors, and in expanding affordable health care to a record number of Americans.
"We've provided critically needed care to a million veterans exposed to toxic substances. Passed the first gun safety law in 30 years. Appointed the first African American woman to the Supreme Court. And passed the most significant climate legislation in the history of the world.
"America has never been better positioned to lead than we are today.
"I know none of this could have been done without you, the American people. Together, we overcame a once in a century pandemic and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. We've protected and preserved our democracy. And we've revitalised and strengthened our alliances around the world.
"It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President. And while it has been my intention to seek re-election, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term.
"I will speak to the nation later this week in more detail about my decision.
"For now, let me express my deepest gratitude to all those who have worked so hard to see me re-elected.
"I want to thank Vice President Kamala Harris for being an extraordinary partner in all this work. And let me express my heartfelt appreciation to the American people for the faith and trust you have placed in me.
"I believe today what I always have: that there is nothing America can't do - when we do it together. We just have to remember we are the United States of America."
A commander on the ground in Kharkiv told The Sun: "If the situation with weapons deteriorates, Americans would have to send their soldiers here to stop Russians from moving to Europe.
"We are protecting NATO here, and it would be much easier and cheaper for them to just give us what we need to win instead of fighting the Russians themselves in a couple of years.
"How hard is that to understand? I don’t think that anyone—Biden, Harris or Trump understands it."
The Kremlin also responded to the news that Biden would be stepping down and said they were cautious about the possibility of Kamala Harris's U.S. presidential candidacy.
Asked if Russia was surprised by Biden's move, Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that events in the United States over recent years had taught Moscow not to be surprised by anything and that in any case, Russia had different priorities.
Speaking in a conference call, Peskov said: "At the moment, we cannot assess the potential candidacy of Ms. Harris from the point of view of our bilateral relations because so far her contribution to our bilateral relations has not been noticed.
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"There were statements that were replete with rhetoric quite unfriendly towards our country, but her actions in relations to bilateral relations come under neither a plus nor a minus sign."
Harris has repeatedly voiced support for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and accused Russia of waging a "barbaric and inhumane" war.
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