I doubt that anyone could have imagined back last summer that Ukraine would be at the center of an impeachment of an American president. Yet, since late September, when the story broke of allegations of President Donald Trump’s campaign to pressure Ukraine to publicly commit to investigating a political opponent, notably by withholding military aid, Ukraine has been in the news on a daily basis.
How has impeachment impacted America’s public perceptions of Ukraine? More importantly, how has it affected U.S. support for Ukraine? First, as tragic as this scandal has been for the United States, it has not been the unmitigated disaster for Ukraine or its standing with America’s public and political elites that some fear. Mr. Trump’s politicization of the U.S.-Ukraine relationship has harmed and complicated U.S.-Ukraine relations in the short-term.