Keith Kellogg will take office as the Russian invasion of Ukraine enters its third year.
US President-elect Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he has chosen Keith Kellogg, a highly decorated retired general, to be his special envoy for Ukraine and Russia.
Donald Trump made the announcement on his Truth Social account, stating: “He was with me from the beginning! Together we will bring peace through strength and make America and the world safe again!”
Keith Kellogg served as national security advisor to Vice President Mike Pence, chief of staff of the National Security Council, and then became acting security advisor to Donald Trump following the resignation of Michael Flynn.
As special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, he will have to navigate an increasingly untenable war between the two nations.
The Biden administration has begun urging Ukraine to quickly increase the size of its military by enlisting more troops and to revise its mobilization laws to allow troops to be conscripted as young as 18 years old.
Since the Russian invasion began in February 2022, the White House has provided more than $56 billion in security aid to Ukraine and plans to send billions more to Kyiv before Joe Biden leaves office. functions.
Donald Trump criticized the billions the Biden administration paid to Ukraine. The Republican president-elect said during the presidential campaign that he could end the war in 24 hours, comments that appeared to suggest he would pressure Ukraine to cede territory that Russia currently occupies .
In April, Keith Kellogg wrote that “Ending the war between Russia and Ukraine will require strong, American-centered leadership to reach a peace agreement and immediately end hostilities between the two warring sides.”