Explained: How Donald Trump Plans To Stop Ukraine War In 24 Hours, How Republican Presidential Candidates See Ukraine War?

Former US President Donald Trump has yet again claimed that he can bring the Ukraine War to an end within 24 hours if he is elected President of the United States.

Trump, who has in the past boasted off his relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, said that he would convince him and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to strike a peace deal within a day. 

Putin announced the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, and dubbed it "special military operation". Throughout the war, Russians have struck non-combatant targets, including apartments, railway stations, and critical infrastructure like power stations in Ukraine, and have caused widespread civilian casualties. The war, however, has not gone as per Putin's plans.

While US President Joe Biden has emerged as the biggest supporter of Ukraine and has equipped the country with arms, ammunition, fighting vehicles, and intelligence support and training, several hardliner Republicans are skeptical or outright opposed to support to Ukraine. 

Here we explain how Trump plans to end the Ukraine War in 24 hours, where different Republican presidential candidates stand on Ukraine War, and how does the Republican Party sees Ukraine War.

Trump's plan to end Ukraine War in 24 hours

Trump's plan to bring peace in Ukraine is based on what he calls his great personal relationships with both Putin and Zelenskyy. 

Over the years, Putin has come under criticism for his praise of Putin. Trump has previously called Putin "smart", "savvy", and "genius". In the run-up to the invasion when Russia was deploying troops along the Ukrainian border and military action seemed imminent, Trump went on to praise Putin's actions.

"Trump described Putin’s aggression toward Ukraine as 'genius' and 'very savvy', adding, in reference to the Russian military, 'they’re gonna keep peace all right'. Trump went on to praise Putin as 'a tough cookie” who has 'great charm'," reported MSNBC about Putin's statement on Feb. 23, a day before the invasion began.

In an interview with Fox News on Sunday, Trump outlined his peace plan for Ukraine War. He said he would tell Zelenskyy to strike a deal with Putin. Then, he would tell Putin to accept the deal with Zelenskyy and warn him Ukraine would get unprecedented support in case he does not accept the deal. Then, the deal would be made.

Trump told Fox, "I know Zelenskyy very well, and I know Putin very well, even better. And I had a good relationship, very good with both of them. I would tell Zelenskyy, no more. You got to make a deal. I would tell Putin, if you don't make a deal, we're going to give him a lot. We're going to [give Ukraine] more than they ever got if we have to. I will have the deal done in one day. One day."

Fox noted that Trump is among several Republican 2024 presidential candidates who are skeptical of the Ukraine War.

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy has rejected Trump's claims 

This is not the first time that Trump has made claims about ending the Ukraine War quickly. Earlier this month, Zelenskyy said that the thought of ending war quickly like Trump is "beautiful" but not possible. Trump said before that the war would have never happened if he was the president instead of Biden.

"My personality kept us out of war. And I told you before, [it] would have never happened with Russia. Putin would have never ever gone in. And even now I could solve that in 24 hours. It's so horrible what happened. Those cities are demolished now," Newsweek quoted Trump as saying in January.

Zelenskyy, meanwhile, has rejected the claim. He said there were war-like conditions during the four-year tenure of Trump and he had four years to do something if he wished to do. He also said that if peace has to come in a deal that cedes territory to Russia, then Biden could have brought such peace in five minutes. 

Speaking to ABC News this month, Zelenskyy said, "Well, it looks as if Donald Trump had already these 24 hours once in his time. We were at war, not a full-scale war, but we were at war and as I assume he had that time at his disposal, but he must have had some other priorities...If we are talking about ending the war at the cost of Ukraine, in other words to make us give up our territories, well, I think in this way Biden could have brought it to an end even in five minutes," he said. "But we would not agree."

Where do Republican 2024 Presidential candidates stand on Ukraine War?

The position on Ukraine War among the US Republican 2024 presidential candidates is based on the divide in the Republican Party. 

The traditional Republicans believe the United States has a greater role to play in the world as a world leader and should therefore support Ukraine against Russian invasion. The newer anti-interventionist far-right Republican wing says the US investments should be directed inwards to solve American problems instead of getting engaged abroad.

Both the leading Republican 2024 presidential candidates, Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, oppose the US aid to Ukraine and are from the second category.

Trump polls 49.7 per cent and DeSantis polls 21 per cent among Republican primary voters, as of July 14, according to polling and news site FiveThirtyEight. 

Other traditional Republican candidates like Mike Pence, Nikki Haley, and Chris Christie support the US aid to Ukraine, but have little support among rank and file Republicans. As of July 14, Pence polls at 7.4 per cent, Haley at 4.2, and Christie at 2.9, according to FiveThirtyEight. 

Trump and DeSantis have said the Ukraine War does not matter much to the United States. The New York Times reported, "Former President Donald J. Trump has said that the war in Ukraine is not of vital importance to the United States...He claimed falsely that the United States was sending so much equipment that “we don’t have ammunition for ourselves."

DeSantis has termed the Ukraine War as "territorial dispute" and said it does not have vital importance to the United States.

"While the U.S. has many vital national interests — securing our borders, addressing the crisis of readiness with our military, achieving energy security and independence, and checking the economic, cultural and military power of the Chinese Communist Party — becoming further entangled in a territorial dispute between Ukraine and Russia is not one of them,” said DeSantis in March.

Lesser popular traditional candidates like Haley and Pence support the aid to Ukraine. Haley has said that a win for Ukraine in the war is win for all of us.

Republican Party on US aid to Ukraine

The position of the Republican 2024 presidential candidates on Ukraine War in a way shows the broader Republican position on the issue. While most the Republican Congress members support the military aid to Ukraine, a significant minority of far-right Republican Congress members oppose the aid. 

Earlier this month, 70 of the 222 Republicans in the House of Representatives voted to cut all military aid to Ukraine. The proposal was defeated as all Democrats and the majority of Republicans, totalling at 358, voted against it. As of now, despite this vocal minority, there exists a strong bipartisan support for Ukraine in Congress.

Many on the Right have argued that it is not in the US interest to support Ukraine, saying that lawmakers should focus greater attention on domestic issues, noted Business Insider, adding that dozens of Republican lawmakers have voted against aid to Ukraine in the past and Trump has expressed a desire to curtail US involvement in the war.

However, influential Republican Congressional leaders like Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, and Intelligence Committee Chairman Michael R Turner support the aid to Ukraine.