KYIV, Ukraine >> Soldiers in a Ukrainian artillery battery on the front lines in the country’s east were only vaguely aware Wednesday of American election results pointing to Donald Trump’s victory. But they were firm in their hopes for the next president of the United States.

Their entrenched artillery battery fires on Russian forces daily — and takes fire nearly as often. Just the other day, one of their overhead nets snared a Russian drone.

“I hope that the quantity of weapons, the quantity of guns for our victory will increase,” the unit’s 39-year-old commander, who goes by the name Mozart, said in the hours before Trump’s win was confirmed. “We don’t care who the president is, as long as they don’t cut us off from help, because we need it.”

The soldiers, who use their Starlink connection to the internet sparingly, learned of the U.S. election results from Associated Press journalists.

Trump’s election throws into doubt American support for Ukraine — and ultimately whether Kyiv can beat back Russia’s invasion.

But Mozart — who like other soldiers Wednesday did not give his name in keeping with Ukrainian military protocol — is among many Ukrainians who hope that Trump will hold the line on American support for their country. Russian forces have recently made gains in the east, although the commander described the front-line situation as “static.”

Yurii Fedorenko, commander of a Ukrainian drone unit also in the Kharkiv region, wears an American flag patch on his uniform. He is keenly aware of how critical American support has been for Ukraine.

“Suppose I were told that there was some country across the ocean that I didn’t even know where it was, and that I had to pay money from my taxes to this country so that it could exist,” said Fedorenko, whose call-sign is Achilles — the same name as his battalion.

“I don’t know how I would react. Therefore, I really thank the Americans and I really believe that they have a good education system, because the vast majority of people understand why the United States helps third countries, and in particular now Ukraine.”

Support, then hesitance

It was under Trump that the United States first sent weapons to Ukraine in its fight against Russia, in 2017. Those Javelin anti-tank missiles were crucial to Ukraine’s ability to fend off the full-scale invasion in 2022. But Trump overall is wary of U.S. involvement in foreign conflicts.

Trump, who has touted his good relationship with President Vladimir Putin and called the Russian leader “pretty smart” for invading Ukraine, has repeatedly criticized American backing of Ukraine. He characterized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as “the greatest salesman on Earth” for winning U.S. aid.

Zelenskyy was among the first world leaders to publicly congratulate Trump, and said the two discussed how to end “Russian aggression against Ukraine” when they met in September.

“I appreciate President Trump’s commitment to the ‘peace through strength’ approach in global affairs. This is exactly the principle that can practically bring just peace in Ukraine closer. I am hopeful that we will put it into action together,” he wrote on the social platform X.

Trump has said repeatedly he would have a peace deal done between Ukraine and Russia within a day if elected, although he has not said how. During his debate with Democratic rival Vice President Kamala Harris, he twice refused to directly answer a question about whether he wanted Ukraine to win — raising concerns that Kyiv would be forced to accept unfavorable terms in any negotiations he oversaw.

In Kyiv

In the capital, which comes under attack from Russian drones near daily, 18-year-old Viktoriia Zubrytska was pragmatic about her expectations for the next American president. She thinks Ukraine will be forced to give up territory in exchange for peace under a Trump presidency.

But she said she preferred that to what she called the false hope that the Biden administration offered.

“We will live in a world of facts where we will be certain what awaits us,” said the law student. “Certainty and objective truth is much better than lies and life in illusions.”

In NATO

America’s NATO allies were closely watching the election. France and Germany arranged a last-minute, top-level defense meeting Wednesday in Paris to discuss the results, and Ukraine was central to the meeting. The two leading powers in the European Union provide significant support to Ukraine to defend it against Russia’s war.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, citing a “more aggressive Russia,” also invoked Trump’s motto of “peace through strength.”

Rutte praised Trump for his work during his first term to persuade countries in the alliance to ramp up defense spending.