(LifeSiteNews) — Archbishop Georg Gänswein, the papal nuncio to Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia, said during an interview last week that the Baltic allies of Ukraine have been disappointed by the Trump administration’s approach to the Russia-Ukraine War.
Gänswein, who previously served as Pope Benedict XVI’s secretary, emphasized during the June 13 interview (Viewable at the link below) with EWTN News that the Baltic states bordering Ukraine do not approve of how U.S. President Donald Trump has handled the Russia-Ukraine War due to their distrust of Russia. The Trump administration has been significantly less supportive of Ukraine’s war efforts than the Biden administration.
The nuncio first stressed that the major global powers, such as the United States, play a significant role in the region, and the U.S.’s recent shift in Ukraine policy has disappointed the Baltic countries.
“The major powers play a major role here, and the Baltic states are somewhat disappointed with the attitude of the current U.S. administration. They expected something different,” he said.
The archbishop appears to be referring to the Trump administration’s efforts to negotiate an end to the war between Russia and Ukraine, a significant policy shift from the Biden administration, which had provided its complete support to Ukraine’s war efforts by sending the war-torn nation billions of dollars in aid.
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Shortly after returning to the White House in January, Trump began negotiations with both Russia and Ukraine to end the war. The president’s new diplomatic approach was on full display during an explosive exchange in a February Oval Office meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in which Trump blasted Zelensky for being “disrespectful” and not being ready for peace, then briefly cutting off all aid to the country.
However, in recent months, Trump has appeared to contradict his push for peace by continuing to supply aid to Ukraine. In a recent episode of The John Henry Westen Show, retired Colonel Douglas Macgregor emphasized that Russia has already won the war, and the key to negotiating peace is to cut off all aid to the country.
“(To end the war), it becomes important for us to do two things. Number one, stop all aid to the Ukrainian government, period. No more military assistance of any kind,” Macgregor told Westen during the interview.
READ: Colonel Macgregor: Ukraine has already lost. It’s time for Trump to cut their funding
Gänswein also highlighted the Baltic people’s mistrust of Russia, especially Russian President Vladimir Putin, that he noted goes back to living under the country’s Communist dictatorship.
“There is an atmospheric presence of war,” the nuncio said. “It is important to see reality, to accept it, but also to take it seriously. We must continue to live life normally. And as Christians, we have the great gift of having clear hope and a clear mission in our faith.”
At another point in the interview, Gänswein praised Pope Leo XIV’s efforts to bring an end to the three-year conflict.
“The Holy See is a bridge-builder,” the archbishop said. “This was one of the new Pope’s first words: peace. ‘Peace be with you!’”
READ: Trump says Vatican ‘very interested’ in hosting peace talks between Russia, Ukraine
Indeed, in his first Sunday Regina Caeli address, the 267th pontiff called for an end to all global wars, noting the Ukraine conflict by name. Trump and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni have also said that Pope Leo XIV has offered to mediate peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.
