Trump-Putin conversation yields no breakthrough - Bloomberg
11 days ago, Donald Trump called for a 30-day ceasefire and threatened new sanctions against Russia, which caused cautious optimism among European leaders. However, the conversation between the US leader and the Russian dictator on 19 May showed that this optimism was in vain.
This is stated in a Bloomberg article, Censor.NET reports.
The US may withdraw from the talks
Trump said on social media that Ukraine and Russia would "immediately start negotiations" on a ceasefire, but the US is unlikely to be involved. He made no mention of sanctions, no timeframe requirements, and no pressure on the Russian leader.
After the conversation, Trump addressed European leaders, many of whom are already frustrated by his inconsistency. There is growing concern in European capitals that the US is abandoning its efforts to end the war, leaving Ukraine and its allies to fend for themselves.
One senior European official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that leaders fear Trump is abandoning diplomatic efforts as he has made clear he does not plan to press Russia with new sanctions and is backing away from his own ceasefire proposal.
According to him, neither Kyiv nor its EU allies share the idea of direct talks between Ukraine and Russia.
Managing director of the German Marshall Fund’s "Geostrategy North" program Kristine Berzina believes: "Today, it feels like we are back into a much longer-term scenario, in which Putin is buying himself and his military more time. Putin won himself more opportunities, and a ceasefire and a resolution seem ever further away."
The US president later said that although the US was not withdrawing from the talks, it was considering such an option. He said that there was even a "certain line", which he refused to specify. He did not rule out the possibility of imposing new sanctions or supplying weapons to Ukraine, but made it clear that he was in no hurry to do so.
No breakthrough on peace in Ukraine
The newspaper's analysts note that the conversation between Trump and Putin "yielded no apparent breakthrough over Ukraine".
It remains unclear whether this signals a genuine shift in the Kremlin’s stance or a continued effort to delay talks ... the former is less likely than the latter
Trump's past statements have been more decisive. He said: "nothing is going to happen until Putin and I get together". He was even prepared to change his itinerary during a visit to the Middle East to meet with Putin.
Zelenskyy, who supported Trump's idea of a ceasefire, stressed in conversations with the US leader before and after his call with Putin that if Russia did not cease fire, sanctions should be strengthened. But Trump responded ambiguously, saying that Zelenskyy was "not the easiest person to deal with".
Ahead of the phone call on Monday, US Senator Lindsey Graham, a Trump ally, called for support for the sanctions package, signalling to Putin that there is broad bipartisan support for punishing Russia. Majority Leader John Thune said on Monday that the Senate has a bill on sanctions against Russia "ready to go".
