While former President Donald Trump appears ready to resume his role as commander in chief of the most powerful military and the largest economy in the world, and without wasting time on claiming victory on tuesday united states presidential elections – Leaders around the world began reacting Wednesday to the prospect of a second term in the White House for the businessman-turned-politician.

From the enthusiasm expressed by Israel’s leader as he fights an expanding, multi-front war to the anxiety of some of America’s closest European allies and several generations, the reaction to Trump’s electoral performance began to arrive long before that the final votes in some of the elections would be counted. key battleground states in the US

Here’s how some foreign leaders and others around the world have taken the news of the American electorate’s apparent rebuke of Vice President Kamala Harris and the Democratic Party at the polls.

Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated Trump on Wednesday, calling his election performance “the greatest comeback in history.”

“His historic return to the White House offers a new beginning for America and a powerful commitment to the great alliance between Israel and the United States,” Netanyahu said. “This is a great victory!”

Despite Trump’s criticism of the Israeli leader’s handling of the ongoing war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Netanyahu was widely believed to favor the former American leader in the US election, as tension between Washington and Tel Aviv has increased. drastically over the last year due to Israel’s tactics in its War on multiple fronts with Iran-backed groups in the Middle East.

The war in Gaza, sparked by the Hamas terrorist attack on October 7, 2023 in which militants killed about 1,200 people and kidnapped about 250 more, has now killed more than 43,000 people in the Palestinian territory, according to its Ministry of Health run by Hamas. . Israel has also significantly stepped up its attack on Hezbollah, Hamas’s Iranian-backed allies in Lebanon. The Israeli offensive there has killed more than 3,000 people, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health.

The Biden administration has continued to push for ceasefires on both fronts, without success, and demand that Israel do more to mitigate the devastating impact of wars on civilians.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog, whose role is largely symbolic, He also congratulated Trump about his “historic return to the White House.”

“You are a true and dear friend of Israel and a supporter of peace and cooperation in our region,” Herzog said. “I look forward to working with you to strengthen the strong bond between our peoples, build a future of peace and security for the Middle East, and defend our shared values. On behalf of the Jewish and democratic State of Israel, and all of our people, I wish you much success.”

Viktor of Hungary Orbán

One of the first foreign leaders to congratulate Trump on Wednesday was one of the few who openly supported him Long before the final votes were cast in the United States, Hungary’s far-right President Viktor Orbán, who has been accused during his decades of leadership of the Eastern European nation of eroding its democratic institutions by giving himself more power and limit that of the country’s courts and authorities. civil society institutions, called Trump’s apparent success “a much-needed victory for the world!”

in a message posted on social mediaOrbán said Trump had achieved “the biggest comeback in American political history” and congratulated him on his “huge victory.”

Orban has become an outsider among European Union leaders by endorsing anti-immigrant policies and maintaining close ties with President Vladimir Putin amid The current Russian invasion of neighboring Ukraine – all while touting his close ties to Trump.

In a speech over the summer, Orbán suggested he had even helped shape Trump’s future statecraft, claiming to have “entered the policy-writing system of President Donald Trump’s team,” with “deep involvement there.”

Head of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Russian Parliament

Leonid Slutsky, who heads the International Affairs Committee of Russia’s State Duma, or parliament, was quoted on Wednesday by state news agency RIA Novosti as saying that a Trump victory would offer “an opportunity for a more constructive approach to the Ukrainian conflict.” . “

“Trump was and remains a big businessman in big politics. Can we expect changes in approaches to the US role in the Ukrainian conflict, which has been fueled by the Democratic administration since 2014? Judging by the rhetoric election (if you can still believe it), the Republican team is not going to send more and more American taxpayer money into the furnace of a proxy war against Russia,” Slutsky said. “Maybe there is an opportunity to take a more constructive approach.”

Slutsky did not comment on Trump’s repeated promises to quickly end the war in Ukraine if he is re-elected, something European and Ukrainian leaders fear what could ending vast US military support for kyiv and forcing Ukraine to accept Russia’s seizure of important Ukrainian territory.

Slutsky predicted, however, that if the next U.S. administration cuts off that support, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s U.S.-backed Ukrainian government will fall “in a matter of months, if not days.”

There was no immediate reaction from President Vladimir Putin, who never spoke in favor of either candidate during the US election campaign process, but whose leadership Trump has praised previously.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer did his best on Wednesday, despite a clear delineation between their own policies and those expected from another Trump administration, to maintain the decorum of the historic “special friendship” between the two nations.

in a social media postStarmer congratulated Trump “on his historic election victory” and added that he looks forward to “working with you for years to come.”

“As the closest allies, we stand shoulder to shoulder in defense of our shared values ​​of freedom, democracy and enterprise,” said Starmer, who came to power just a few months ago when Britain’s left-leaning Labor Party won national elections. overwhelmingly after a decade and a half of Conservative Party government.

“I know that the special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom will continue to thrive on both sides of the Atlantic for years to come,” Starmer added.

French President Emmanuel Macron.

“Congratulations, President @realDonaldTrump,” French President Emmanuel Macron. said in a brief statement posted on social media on Wednesday. He declared that his administration was “ready to work together” again as it did during Trump’s first term, “with your convictions and mine. With respect and ambition. For more peace and prosperity.”

But an hour later, the French president issued another statement hinting at the concerns he and many of his European colleagues are likely to share about Trump’s commitment to the NATO transatlantic alliancethe future support of the United States to Ukraine in the war with Russia and its position on tariffs on foreign imports.

In his second tweet, Macron said had just spoken with German Chancellor Olaf Sholz, and that the leaders of the EU’s two largest economies had agreed “to work for a more united, stronger and more sovereign Europe in this new context. Cooperating with the United States of America and defending our interests and our values.”

Ursula von der Leyen, from the European Union

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Union bloc’s governing body, the European Commission, congratulated Trump on Wednesday and reiterated her hope in a brief social media post that the United States and the EU could “work together on a strong transatlantic agenda that continues to deliver results” for citizens on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.

“I warmly congratulate Donald J. Trump. The EU and the United States are more than just allies,” said Von der Leyen. “We are united by a true partnership between our people, uniting 800 million citizens. So let us work together on a strong transatlantic agenda that continues to deliver results for them.”