NATO takes control from US of air defenses in Poland crucial to supporting Ukraine days before Trump takes office [View all]
Source: CNN Politics
Published 5:49 PM EST, Thu January 9, 2025
CNN — NATO has taken over air defenses in Poland from the US just days before the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump, according to a NATO spokesman, with questions looming about the incoming administration’s approach to the alliance and to Ukraine.
NATO assumed command and control from the US on Thursday, said Col. Martin O’Donnell, and will help to safeguard logistics nodes in Poland that are needed to continue delivering aid crucial to Ukraine’s war effort against Russia. The move is part of a broader effort that has been in the works for months to shift the burden of helping Ukraine from the US to European countries, amid questions over whether US support would continue under the Trump administration.
NATO allies have been bracing for US support for Ukraine to shrink over the next year. Trump has questioned the value of aid to Ukraine and the US commitment to NATO, and while he has said he wants to end the war he has not yet weighed in on whether his administration will continue providing military assistance to Ukraine.
Ahead of the imminent transfer of power, the US has worked to transition aid to Ukraine from a US-led effort to a NATO-led mechanism in part to “Trump-proof” the assistance, CNN has reported. “That work is ongoing, with NATO shouldering more and more responsibility every day,” said O’Donnell, a spokesman for NATO’s Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe.
Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2025/01/09/politics/nato-air-defenses-poland-ukraine/index.html
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