European diplomats in DC scramble to gain access to Trump allies for insights

European diplomats in Washington are frantically working to set up meetings with allies of former president Donald Trump as they prepare for his potential return to the White House, sources familiar with the effort tell CNN.

At face-to-face sit-downs in private DC clubs, hotels, embassies and think tanks around town, diplomats are asking questions about Trump’s policy intentions and his possible personnel choices, and sending notes back to their European capitals where officials are hungry for any insights as they work to set up guard rails for NATO and try to ensure lasting support for Ukraine in its war with Russia.

As ambassadors and diplomatic staffers jostle to make contact with those who might know what Trump is planning, informal lists of some former high-ranking Trump officials are floating around embassies, including former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien, and Keith Kellogg, former Vice President Mike Pence’s top national security adviser.

The meetings aren’t always pleasant and have at times become emotional, but in most interactions, the diplomats simply listen diligently, according to two sources who have been present for some of them. But they are coveted, and in many cases, easier for some diplomats to set up than for others.

Ambassadors from larger countries, and those who have been in Washington for several years, are having an easier time tapping into Trump’s circle, compared to ambassadors who are new to DC, and those from smaller countries, multiple diplomats said.