Zelensky and his plan for victory The agonizing wait for an answer from America

During his recent visit to the USA, the Ukrainian president did not receive permission to use far-reaching weapons against Russia. But this is an important element of his plan. What happens next?

President Volodymyr Selenskyj is back in Ukraine - after a US visit with mixed results. The government there promised him more than eight billion dollars in further support, guaranteeing him continued US military aid in the fight against the Russian invaders until the next American government is in office. And he met with both presidential candidates - Kamala Harris and Donald Trump - and briefed them on what his country hopes for from the future US head of state.

But Zelenskyi apparently came no closer to his longer-term strategic goal: convincing his allies to accept a plan for victory that he is promoting - and whose most immediate element is permission to use far-reaching Western weapons against Russia. The US has so far resisted this, fearing that such use of weapons supplied by them could be interpreted by Russia as direct US involvement in the war and lead to an escalation.

And as there is little time left for Biden to set a potentially decisive course, Selensky also met with both potential successors - and briefly got caught up in the quagmire of this election campaign. His visit to an ammunition factory in the particularly hotly contested state of Pennsylvania got Republicans up in arms, with the Chairman of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, denouncing the visit in an open letter as a partisan move to support the Democrats and calling on Selenskyj to fire his ambassador to the USA - which did not happen.

Ukraine tickerZelensky calls for show of strength from Ukrainians in the fall

Vance "too radical"

There was then talk that the planned meeting between Zelensky and Trump could be called off, but the two then met in New York last Friday. Selensky also irritated some Republicans with a statement about Trump's running mate JD Vance: he was "too radical", he told "The New Yorker" magazine.

But with the meetings, Ukraine has publicly shown that it is seeking contact with both candidates equally, says Oleksandr Krajew from the foreign policy analysis center Ukrainian Prism in Kiev. "Ukraine has no favorites and is ready for open, normal relations with any future government."

Selensky personally explained his vision of victory to Trump. He believes that the use of weapons that can reach targets deep inside Russia would be a step in the direction of ending the war, as presidential adviser Mychailo Podolyak said. "Of course, it would not lead to an immediate end to everything," he added. "But we want to see light at the end of the tunnel, and we want to understand how and when this war will be concluded."

The leadership in Kiev is waiting for the next meeting of the Contact Group for the Defense of Ukraine on 12 October in Ramstein. This is a committee with representatives from more than 50 partner countries that meets regularly to coordinate aid. Ukraine hopes that the next conference will provide an indication of how Selensky's victory plan will be received. He has not presented it publicly, but the US ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said in mid-September that she had seen parts of it and that it set out a strategy that could work.

"We just have to wait a bit"

According to Podoljak, Ukraine has recently made it clear to Washington what resources are needed to maintain defense at the current and potentially decisive stage of the war. There have been no public commitments regarding Ukraine's ideas, but according to Podolyak, the leadership in Kiev believes a response is likely at the October 12 meeting in Ramstein. "We'll just have to wait a bit while our partners have internal discussions now," he said.

Selenskyj said at the end of his most recent visit to the USA that everything Ukraine needed to defeat Russia was "on the partner's table" - an indication that the leadership in Kiev has no other option than to wait for Washington's decision. "The plan for victory has been presented to America, and we have explained every point."

But observers and parliamentarians say Ukraine views both presidential candidates as potentially problematic. Many are concerned about Trump's assertion that the war could be ended quickly if he wins the election. They fear that this could mean negotiations based on Russian terms and force Ukraine to make territorial concessions.

Permission after the election?

Others have concerns that Harris would continue Biden's foreign policy, which many Ukrainians believe is driven mainly by fear of an extended war rather than a well thought-out strategy on how to beat Russia.

But many Ukrainian representatives are hopeful that Biden will relent before he leaves office. "Biden is too cautious to give that permission before the election," said a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee who wished to remain anonymous. "But once the election is over, he may give permission."