‘Europe Cannot Bear the Burden of the War Alone’ – Ukraine at War Update for Nov. 4

With millions of early votes already cast, American presidential candidates Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump have spent the weekend reminding voters to get out and vote – for them.

Harris, who is bidding to become the country’s first woman president, will use rallies in Georgia, North Carolina, and Michigan to emphasize that Trump threatens US democracy.

Trump – seeking a sensational return to the White House after losing in 2020 and then becoming the first presidential nominee to have been convicted of crimes – promised a radical right-wing makeover of the government and aggressive trade wars to promote his policy of “America first.”

The 78-year-old, who rallied in Milwaukee, Wisconsin late Friday just miles from Harris’s event, will all but cross paths with her again as Trump makes whistle-stops in North Carolina, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Georgia.

Election Day is Tuesday, but Americans have been voting early for weeks. More than 70 million ballots have already been cast, including a record four million in Georgia, where Democrats seek to pull out all the stops to keep the state in their column.

A final New York Times/Siena poll Sunday flagged incremental changes in swing states, but the results from all seven remained within the margin of error.

The candidates’ frenetic schedules will run right into Monday, culminating with late-night rallies -- in Grand Rapids, Michigan, for Trump and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for Harris.

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Russia, Ukraine Exchange Over 300 POWs Ahead of New Year’s Eve

Moscow and Kyiv swapped 150 Ukrainian soldiers held captive for an equal number of Russian troops on Monday in an exchange deal brokered by the United Arab Emirates.

With the clock ticking, Harris, 60, spent Sunday in must-win Michigan where she risks losing the support of a 200,000-strong Arab-American community that has denounced the US handling of the Israel-Hamas war.

“As president, I will do everything in my power to end the war in Gaza,” Harris said at the start of her speech, noting that there were leaders of the community at her rally.

“I want to say this year has been difficult, given the scale of death and destruction in Gaza, given the civilian casualties and displacement in Lebanon. It is devastating.”

But the rest of the speech was upbeat, with the US vice president spending more time urging people to get out and vote than on attacks on her rival Trump.

“We got two days to get this done,” she said. “Let’s spend the next two days so we have no regrets.”

Trump’s Sunday timetable centered on Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Georgia – the three biggest swing states by the number of electoral votes according to population.

Democrats are “demonic,” the oldest major party candidate in US history told a crowd in Lititz, Pennsylvania, also telling his supporters they would be “stupid” if they didn’t vote.

Despite no evidence of any meaningful election cheating so far, Trump claimed that Democrats in Pennsylvania “are fighting so hard to steal this damn thing.”

Orban says Europe cannot remain ‘pro-war’

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Sunday, as reported by Reuters, that a Trump victory would force the EU to reconsider its support for Ukraine.

Orban warned that Europe cannot support Ukraine unilaterally, referencing the Republican candidate’s threats to decrease aid to Ukraine if elected. Both Trump and Orban have opposed continued military assistance to Kyiv before.

“We [in Europe] need to realize that if there will be a pro-peace president in America, which I not only believe in but I also read the numbers that way... if what we expect happens and America becomes pro-peace, then Europe cannot remain pro-war,” Orban said.

European leaders will discuss Ukraine as a top priority at the European Political Community meeting in Budapest later this week. 

Many EU leaders have voiced concern about what could happen to the US-Ukraine relationship if Trump returned to power.

“Europe cannot bear the burden of [the war] alone, and if Americans switch to peace, then we also need to adapt, and this is what we will discuss in Budapest,” Orban said.

“A Trump victory would create grave risks. The situation would be alarming,” former Ukrainian ambassador to the US Oleg Shamshur told AFP. 

Trump’s repeated criticism of US support for Ukraine and claims that he would end the fighting within 24 hours, have only raised Ukraine’s fears. 

“Neither he nor his team believe in Ukraine’s victory,” Shamshur said.

Hungary holds the Presidency of the EU Council until next year and has angered allies in Brussels with his close ties to Russia.

AFU holding back ‘one of the most powerful offensives’ of the full-scale invasion

The Ukrainian Armed Forces (AFU) are holding off one of the most powerful offensives by Russian forces since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.

AFU Commander-in-Chief, Gen. Oleksandr Syrsky said this at a meeting with a delegation of the Czech Armed Forces led by Chief of the General Staff, Lt. Gen. Karel Rehka, Ukrinform reports, citing Syrsky’s Telegram post.

“I informed my Czech colleagues about the situation on the battlefield, which continues to be difficult. Active combat operations, which continue in certain areas, require the constant replenishment of the resources of Ukrainian units. The Ukrainian Armed Forces are currently holding off one of the most powerful offensives of the Russians since the beginning of the full-scale invasion,” Syrsky wrote.

He stressed that Czechia is a loyal ally of Ukraine and has initiated several critically important initiatives, including the capability coalition for artillery and armored vehicles, the fighter jet coalition, and the coalition of the integrated air defense/missile defense system.

Syrsky thanked Rehka, the government, and the people of the Czech Republic for their support of Ukraine and expressed hope that “the practical implementation of current initiatives will continue.”

Ukraine said on Saturday Kyiv had come under heavy drone attack overnight, as fresh explosions were heard in the capital and other regions were struck.

“Unfortunately, the attack by Russian drones caused damage and casualties in various districts of Kyiv,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

He said that the “constant terrorist attacks on Ukrainian cities prove that the pressure on Russia and its accomplices is not enough.”

In the morning the Ukrainian Air Force said it had shot down 39 out of 71 drones launched from Russia overnight.

In a village near the southern city of Kherson, a 40-year-old woman was pulled dead from rubble after Russian troops fired artillery, and four were injured including three children, the governor Oleksandr Prokudin said.

Moldova’s pro-EU incumbent President Maia Sandu wins re-election

Moldova’s pro-EU incumbent Maia Sandu on Sunday won a tense presidential runoff, beating her rival backed by a pro-Russian party in what she described as a “lesson in democracy.”

The election in the ex-Soviet republic that lies sandwiched between war-torn Ukraine and the EU has been overshadowed by allegations of meddling by Moscow.

The key vote took place just two weeks after a referendum backed joining the EU by a razor-thin margin.

Sandu stood at 54.94% of the vote against 45.06% for Alexandr Stoianoglo, who is supported by the pro-Russian Socialists and whom Sandu fired as prosecutor general last year, according to near-complete results published by the election commission.

"Today, dear Moldovans, you have given a lesson in democracy, worthy of being written in history books.... Freedom, truth, and justice have prevailed," Sandu declared.

Earlier, the 52-year-old former World Bank economist thanked jubilant supporters for "their honest vote".

Her rival Stoianoglo, 57, urged people "to remain calm, regardless of the figures".

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen congratulated Sandu on her re-election victory and the country's "European future", saying it took "a rare kind of strength to overcome the challenges you've faced in this election".

French President Emmanuel Macron said democracy had "triumphed over all interference and all maneuvers".

Like in Georgia, another ex-Soviet country where the ruling party won a contested parliamentary election last weekend, Russia has been accused of seeking to sway voters. Moscow has denied the allegations.

Moldovan authorities reported "attacks, provocations, and attempts at destabilization" on Sunday, accusing Russia of being behind the issues.