Volodymyr Zelensky hopes Washington will increase its support for Kyiv under the new Congress. “We have bipartisan support, support from both parties. I’m grateful to the Republicans too, but the Democrats are very clear about supporting Ukraine and providing it with aid,” the Ukrainian president said in an interview with the German broadcaster ZDF. He also expressed hope that increased U.S. support would bring peace closer. If that happens, “Putin will consider whether it makes sense to keep fighting,” Zelensky said.

The Kremlin hopes to continue discussing peace with Trump. “President Trump remains in office, and we sincerely hope he will continue his peacemaking efforts as well,” Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. He called the changes in Congress “an internal U.S. matter.” Russia’s Foreign Ministry said Moscow’s foreign policy does not depend on “shifts in the political climate in other countries.”

The president sets U.S. foreign policy, but the Democrats will be able to use the budget to influence his decisions. A Democratic majority in Congress will be able to push for increased aid to Ukraine and other concessions in exchange for approving Trump’s initiatives, The Guardian reported.

Europeans are optimistic about the Democrats’ victory. European Parliament Vice President Christel Schaldemose wrote that a stronger Democratic Party could strengthen support for Ukraine, help the green transition, and improve U.S. relations with the rest of the world. One European diplomat told Euronews that they expected more consistent deliveries of military aid to Ukraine with the Democrats in control.

There are also concerns in Europe that Trump’s foreign policy could become more unpredictable. After losing control of Congress, the U.S. president may focus on international affairs. “He will be more a ‘mad dog’ than a ‘lame duck,’” another European official told Euronews.

The war in photographs: Donetsk

Ukrainian drones attacked Russian-occupied Donetsk on the night of November 2-3. A building belonging to the mobile operator Feniks, which uses equipment from the Ukrainian company Kyivstar, was hit. Mobile service in the city was disrupted after the explosions.