Australia's opposition leader vows to challenge Trump on Ukraine
The leader of the Australian opposition, Peter Dutton, announced that if he becomes Prime Minister, he will press U.S. President Donald Trump to reconsider his stance on Ukraine.
Peter Dutton had previously criticized Donald Trump for calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky a "dictator," and is now further distancing himself from the American leader’s policies, especially after the recent incident at the White House.
I was disappointed by the scenes out of the White House. I believe that President Zelensky requires the support of European countries, of the United States, and countries like Australia as well, Dutton said during a press conference on Monday, as quoted by theconversation.com.
Dutton emphasized that the United States remains a key ally of Australia but noted that his country's interests do not always have to align with American political decisions. Making decisions in the best interest of Australia sometimes means "standing up to your friends and to those traditional allies because our views have diverged," said the opposition leader.
In relation to Ukraine, the Australian view at the moment is different to the United States, and my job as prime minister will be to lobby the president of the United States to reconsider his position in relation to Ukraine, continued Dutton.
In mid-February, the site abc.net.au reported that a YouGov poll indicated that Peter Dutton is most likely to become the next Prime Minister. His ratings are, therefore, high.
Australia supports Ukraine
Since the beginning of the war, Australia has consistently supported Ukraine, providing about $1.3 billion CAD in aid, of which $1.1 billion CAD is military support.
During a government meeting on Monday, the current Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese again emphasized Australia's unwavering support for Ukraine.
We regard this as an issue of doing what’s right, but also what is in Australia’s national interest, said Albanese. The brave people of Ukraine, led so extraordinarily by President Zelensky, are fighting not just for their national sovereignty and for their democracy. They are fighting for the international rule of law. And it is an easy choice that Australia has made, quoted by theconversation.com.
