Senate begins to vet Trump’s key Ukraine-related picks

The US Senate has begun vetting President-elect Donald Trump’s nominees for key governing positions.

The first one to face scrutiny from the Senators is Pete Hegseth, Trump’s pick for chief of the Pentagon. Lloyd Austin currently holds the position. Austin is one of the key figures in providing military aid to Ukraine, including through the Ramstein format.

The Pentagon is the headquarters building of the United States Department of Defense (DoD), including all three military services: US Army, Navy, and Air Force. It employs roughly 27,000 people and is one of the biggest and most complex federal departments.

Pete Hegseth has already met with the Senate Armed Services Committee. His nomination is among the most problematic. While he has combat experience and completed tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, also serving as an infantry captain in the Army National Guard, he lacks experience in managing structures of this size and complexity.

He also faces accusations of sexual impropriety, excessive drinking, and financial mismanagement that reportedly took place in the past.

And opposes women in combat roles, though he already backtracked on this, calling some women “some of our greatest warriors.”

If appointed, he will become one of the central figures in forming the military aid policy for Ukraine, with access to sensitive information that is later briefed to selected individuals. In 2023, CNN reported that demand for the Pentagon’s daily intelligence briefing has risen following the full-scale invasion “as multiple people at agencies across the government are eager for updates on Ukraine’s military capabilities and plans, which the Joint Staff tracks and analyzes closely.“

This is slated to continue despite Trump’s peace push, which is not expected to take place in the coming weeks or months despite his original promise to end the Russo-Ukraine war ‘in 24 hours’ or ‘even before he gets to the White House.’ Trump and his special envoy, General Keith Kellogg, are now eyeing 6 months and 100 days, respectively.

Hegseth’s chances of passing the Senate confirmation are unclear, though multiple unrelated sources in Washington, D.C., told the Euromaidan Press that they expect him to succeed, even if the sail is rocky. At the time of writing, his scrutiny was underway, with Hegseth accusing his opponents of launching a ‘coordinated smear campaign.’ Meanwhile, the Democrats believe that his FBI checks were insufficient.

Hegseth’s view of Ukraine is neutral. Though at times being critical of Ukraine, he recognizes Putin’s imperial ambitions in the region.

Trump’s pick for Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, is set to replace Anthony Blinken in the position.

Once Trump’s opponent, the relationship between them has not always been rosy. The most memorable feud took place in 2016 when the two were fighting for the Republican ticket, with Trump dubbing him “Little Marco” and Rubio elusively suggesting that Trump’s “little hands” mean that his reproductive organ is also small.

Over time, their relations have improved. In 2022, Trump extended an olive branch to Rubio, telling the massive rally in Miami, “You need Marco Rubio fighting for you in the US Senate. He is fantastic.”

In 2024, Rubio endorsed Trump for the presidency.

His confirmation is expected to go seamlessly as Rubio is an experienced foreign policy politician of Cuban descent. He strongly criticized President Barack Obama for his response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea and invasion of Eastern Ukraine.

He’s also an anti-Iran hawk and strongly pro-Israel.

Multiple EP sources, including those who we interviewed, like Trump’s former ambassador to the OSCE, James Gilmore, and IWP’s research fellow, Michael DiCianna, believe that Rubio is the best pick for Ukraine in the current administration. This is mainly due to his foreign policy expertise and his sympathy for Ukrainians, as his late father escaped Communist Cuba. When he passed away, Rubio emphasized that “he was especially determined to provide his children opportunities he himself never had.”

This story is being updated.