Putin is fooling Trump, and he doesn’t even seem to realize it - WP
US President Donald Trump seems to have an infinite supply of patience, goodwill, and understanding in his dealings with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, who continues to sabotage Washington's demonstrative peace efforts to end the war in Ukraine.
This is reported by The Washington Post, Censor.NET reports.
On March 11, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy agreed to the Trump administration's proposal for a 30-day ceasefire. Putin did not. He has made it clear that Russia's unprovoked aggression will continue until, in his view, the "root causes" of the conflict are addressed.
On March 30, Trump said that he was "very angry" with Putin for dragging out the negotiations and threatened to impose additional sanctions on Russian oil exports.
The publication reminds that this was 50 days ago, and there is still no sign of any additional sanctions.
Instead, yesterday, May 19, the US president held a two-hour phone conversation with Putin, which did not bring any noticeable progress.
Instead of announcing that Russia would abide by the ceasefire, Trump said on Truth Social that "Russia and Ukraine will immediately begin negotiations on a ceasefire and, more importantly, an end to the war."
The newspaper's columnist Max Booth notes that given how much attention Trump pays to ending the war in Ukraine, one would think that such intransigence by Russia would infuriate him. But no. Instead of scolding Putin as he had earlier scolded Zelenskiy, Trump insisted that his inconclusive phone call with the Russian dictator "went very well."
"If Ukraine had stopped the war unilaterally, it would have been destroyed as a nation. If Russia stopped fighting, the war would be over. Yet Trump never states this obvious truth in public - and, as far as we know, in private conversations either. Putin is leading Trump by the nose, and Trump is letting him do it," WP emphasizes.
Behind closed doors, the newspaper reports, the White House chief says that ending the war is harder than it seems.
"It would be much easier if he was willing to treat Putin the same way he treats anyone who challenges his will. If Trump really wanted to end the war in Ukraine, he would immediately take three steps to increase pressure on Russia. First, he would ensure that European states transfer at least $300 billion in frozen Russian assets to Ukraine; second, he would tighten sanctions on Russian energy exports to undermine the Russian economy; and third, he would promise to provide or at least sell Ukraine all the weapons it needs for long-term defense. In this case, Putin would realize that the chances of winning the war are disappearing, and he will have to seriously sit down at the negotiating table," the article says.
The publication adds that the situation may change over the next year, provided that Ukraine is able to prevent Russia's spring offensive and prevent its significant intensification.
"There are some grounds for optimism in this regard, largely due to the rapid growth of Ukraine's own defense industry... While Trump's failure to achieve peace does not spell disaster for Ukraine, it certainly destroys his image as a skilled negotiator. Faced with Russia's tough stance, Trump is neglecting the main rule of effective negotiations - the need for pressure," WP summarizes.
