Biden’s Final Push on Ukraine, Russia and Eastern Europe

A Biden administration official sees "magical thinking" in the promise of peace in 100 days' time

President Joe Biden meets with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky at the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on September 26, 2024. (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

By Ambassador Michael Carpenter

Ambassador Michael Carpenter is Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Europe at the National Security Council. He previously served as Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). He previously served in the Pentagon as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Russia, Ukraine, Eurasia, and Conventional Arms Control; worked in the White House as a foreign policy advisor to then-Vice President Biden and as Director for Russia at the National Security Council; and was a career Foreign Service Officer with the State Department.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW — One week from today, the incoming Trump administration will take the reins, and it is already preparing to act when it comes to the Russian war against Ukraine. President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for special envoy to Ukraine, former U.S. Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, has suggested that a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia can be reached 100 days from Trump’s inauguration on January 20. That’s longer than Trump’s previous claim that he could end the war in 24 hours, but it’s an ambitious pledge nonetheless. Gen. Kellogg says this timeline will help ensure “this solution is solid, it’s sustainable and that this war ends so that we stop the carnage.” Experts say an agreement may include Ukraine ceding control of Russian-occupied territory for the time being.

For its part, the Biden administration is using its final days to, as it has said, surge as much aid to Ukraine as it can. The administration announced its final tranche of security assistance last week, which includes $500 million worth of air defense missiles, munitions, and F-16 equipment.

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