General Ben Hodges responded to reports from Ukrainian sources that the Ukrainian Armed Forces were forced to withdraw from Kursk, Russia—a city Ukraine had controlled for eight months—after President Donald Trump decided to terminate US intelligence support. According to these reports, the decision, potentially responsible for hundreds of Ukrainian casualties, enabled Russian forces to move southward toward the Ukrainian border, attempting to encircle and isolate Ukrainian troops, ultimately forcing their retreat. Is this how the United States treats its allies?Speaking with Jason Smart of the Kyiv Post, Hodges, who commanded the US Army in Europe from 2014 to 2017, discussed the broader consequences of Trump’s decision for European, American, and global security, including how adversaries may respond. He emphasized that Western policymakers must confront an uncomfortable truth: superficial declarations of support for Ukraine only embolden Russia, particularly when the West remains unwilling to state explicitly that it will “do everything possible to ensure Ukraine’s victory.”