How Ukraine Can Help Donald Trump Defeat Iran
President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky have a strange relationship, to put it delicately. From “perfect” phone calls to clashes in the Oval Office, it may seem that the two men have been destined to be at loggerheads since the American’s first term. It is perhaps surprising, then, that Zelensky has emerged as one of the most vocal supporters of Trump’s war against the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Far from freeloading off the United States, Ukraine’s loyalty in the midst of this war is a remarkable testament to the beleaguered nation’s dedication to the West. Zelensky and his countrymen understand that defeating the Iranian regime is about more than the narrow regional politics of the Middle East; it is about upholding the international order. They are willing to share their battle-won expertise and even industrial capacity precisely because they understand the scale of the fight the West faces. The Trump administration would do well to recognize these contributions and use them to help win the war against the radicals in Tehran.
Zelensky first made his unwavering support for Operation Epic Fury clear on February 28, hours after the airstrikes began. “It is important that the United States is acting decisively,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “Whenever there is American resolve, global criminals weaken.” The statement is remarkable not only for its moral clarity about the evil of tyranny, but also for its fundamental realism about geopolitics. Zelensky understands that the global war against autocracy cannot be divided into artificial spheres of influence; what happens in one theater affects all the others.
The Ukrainian president echoed earlier statements from his government supporting strong action against the Iranian regime. Last summer, Ukrainian officials stood firmly by the United States and Israel during strikes to contain the Islamic Republic’s nuclear threat. The Ukrainians’ support of American action against Iranian terrorists is not rooted in partisan politics, but rather the knowledge that, as one statement from Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs put it, “Iran is complicit in the crime of aggression against Ukraine.” To them, the conflict with the regime is not a “Democrat war” or “Republican war,” but simply a stand against a rogue state that has aimed its drones and missiles directly at the heart of the international order.
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