The renowned Oxford historian said that Trump has spoken extensively about Ukraine “not because it matters a lot to him but because it doesn't matter so much to him and therefore he wants to get it out of the way.”

He said the uncertainty surrounding a second Trump administration put the onus on Europe, including the UK, to provide the security guarantees Ukraine needs to achieve lasting peace.

He also said Europe and the West should not count on a sudden Russian collapse.

“Putin still has major resources of power,” he said. “We have to reckon that a strong and aggressive Russia, with now a war economy, remains a major threat to our security and freedom for many years to come.”

Urging Europe to “wake up” to the fact that it is “already in a hybrid war with Putin's Russia,” Professor Garton Ash said the world is in a new era of history and that all eyes are now on Ukraine, particularly in the global south.

“They see this as a war between Russia and the West,” he said. “If Russia wins, that means, in their eyes, the West has lost... and that encourages anyone else to have a go and grab a bit of territory.”

Timothy Garton Ash is the author of ‘Homelands: A Personal History of Europe’