Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he hopes the Democrats’ sweeping midterm victory will bring more help for Ukraine, on the same day Vladimir Putin’s envoy arrived in Washington to press Moscow’s case with the Trump administration.
Key Points
- Ukraine’s president said in an interview on Wednesday that he hoped Democratic gains would generate more help for Kyiv.
- Putin’s envoy Kirill Dmitriev was expected in Washington on Thursday, barely 48 hours after the midterm results.
- Dmitriev is seeking the lifting of US sanctions on the Russian Direct Investment Fund, which Washington once called a Kremlin slush fund.
- Trump retains his veto and executive powers, and the White House reminded Americans: “Trump is still your president.”
Zelenskyy’s remarks, made in an interview on Wednesday, came after Democrats seized control of both chambers of the US Congress in a sweeping rejection of President Trump’s party and his policies. The Ukrainian leader has watched US support become steadily more conditional this year: in early October, Trump and Putin signed a diesel deal that angered Kyiv and its allies, followed by threats to halt US intelligence sharing and the interruption of the Starlink internet network — a crucial service for the front line, owned by pro-Trump billionaire Elon Musk. Zelenskyy denounced what he called a betrayal at the time.
On Wednesday, a sense of payback was palpable across Europe. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas expressed hope that the next US Congress will be more supportive of Ukraine, and the Democratic victory rekindled hopes of blocking the diesel agreement in particular, which could refill Kremlin coffers. A 2022 law banning all oil imports until Russia withdraws from Ukraine, and a September 2026 law, already pose a problem for diesel importers, who view the deal as toxic.
Dmitriev’s mission
But Moscow is not standing still. Kirill Dmitriev, Putin’s envoy and architect of the Russian-American energy and financial “deals” coveted by the Trump administration, was expected in Washington on Thursday, barely 48 hours after the election. In a gesture meant to show ongoing Russian goodwill toward the American president, the investment fund executive was scheduled to meet with First Lady Melania Trump.
Officially, Dmitriev is to discuss with Ukrainian representatives the humanitarian issues arising from the mission led by Trump’s wife after the evacuation of the beleaguered residents of the Ukrainian city of Oleshky, which had endured a long siege. Behind the scenes, however, he is mainly working to have United States sanctions against his fund, the Russian Direct Investment Fund, lifted. The US had previously labelled the fund a Kremlin slush fund.
Russia hoped that the overwhelming Democratic victory would not alter Trump’s eagerness to do business with Moscow, even if it meant disregarding Ukraine’s fate.
What happens next
The new Congress gives Democrats subpoena power and the ability to legislate, but Trump retains executive power, which he has exercised since 2025 by executive action, often disregarding Congress. Since Wednesday, he has been keen to remind lawmakers of his veto power — and legal action over the diesel deal is possible, with Congress able to consider voting to block it.
Stephen Sestanovich, an expert at the Council on Foreign Relations and former ambassador-at-large to the former Soviet Union, said Trump was now seriously weakened politically, losing influence and vulnerable in the lame-duck second half of his term. Whether that weakness translates into more help for Kyiv — or simply into gridlock while the war grinds on — will be one of the first tests of the new Congress.
Sources
- Le Monde — https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2026/11/05/2026-us-midterms-after-republican-defeat-ukraine-clings-to-slim-hope-of-slowing-us-drift-toward-russia_6772471_4.html
- The Hindu — https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/us-midterm-elections-2026-results-trump-senate-congress-races-winners-losers-live-updates-republicans-democrats/article71668404.ece