The defence secretary has struck a defiant tone on US support for Ukraine amid fears Donald Trump will force Volodymyr Zelensky to do a deal with Russia.
John Healey said he expects the Americans to stand with Ukraine for “as long as it takes to prevail over (Vladimir) Putin’s invasion".
He said that the former president, who will return to the White House in January after a sweeping election win, “recognises that countries get security through strength, just as alliances like Nato do”. And Mr Healey stressed that America’s determination to support Ukraine in its campaign against Russia is “just as strong” as before voters in the US went to the polls.
Asked whether Ukraine’s safety had diminished since Mr Trump’s election win, Mr Healey told Sky News: "No, I don’t. The US alongside the UK have been two of the leading countries that have been standing by Ukraine, supporting Ukraine, our determination to do so is just as strong."
He added: "As far as President Trump goes, he recognises that countries get security through strength, just as alliances like Nato do, and I expect the US to remain alongside allies like the UK, standing with Ukraine for as long as it takes to prevail over Putin’s invasion."
His comments come after a report in The Washington Post claimed Mr Trump phoned Putin the day after the election and warned him not to escalate the war in Ukraine.
He allegedly asked the Russian president not to escalate his war and reminded him of the U.S.’s military presence in Europe.
Mr Trump has repeatedly claimed that, had he won the 2020 general election instead of Joe Biden, Russia would never have invaded Ukraine.
And he has promised to end the war immediately when he returns to the White House, leading to fears he will negotiate a deal that would see Ukraine give up land to Russia in what Putin could present as a win.
Last year, Mr Trump told Fox News that he would tell Mr Zelensky “No more, you gotta make a deal” in order to broker peace between the two countries.
And, after a Trump ally appeared to suggest that the war could end if Kyiv was open to ceding land to Russia, Mr Healey said it is “Ukraine that gets to call when the talking starts”.
He told BBC Breakfast: “Because of the strength of bipartisan support in the US and a recognition that it’s in no one’s interest to let an aggressor like Putin redraw international boundaries by force, I expect the US to remain steadfast alongside countries like the UK.”
But, acknowledging the unpredictability of the former president ahead of his return, Mr Healey said the world will have to “wait and see” what he proposes for Ukraine.
He added: “We’ll have to wait and see what President Trump really proposes... but if the reports of his call with (Vladimir) Putin last week are right then President Trump is exactly right to warn Putin against escalation of the conflict in Ukraine.
"And our task as a nation supporting Ukraine, one of its leading supporters, alongside allies like France, is to step up our support to reinforce the position that Ukraine has at this period where it’s under great pressure from Russia."
Sir Keir Starmer is in Paris with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron discussing the security of Ukraine and plans to encourage Mr Biden to drop his opposition to British Storm Shadow missiles being fired at targets deep inside Russia.
In a bid to ramp up support for Ukraine before Mr Trump’s inauguration, the pair want Mr Biden to allow their use and send a significant package of extra support before the end of his term.
