Trump said Putin is not ready to end war because he thinks he is winning - WSJ
During a phone conversation with European leaders on Monday, May 19, US President Donald Trump said that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin is not ready to end the war because he believes he is winning.
This is reported by The Wall Street Journal, Censor.NET reports.
"This admission confirmed what European leaders have long believed about Putin, but this is the first time they have heard it from Trump's lips. It also contradicts Trump's public statements, where he has repeatedly claimed that Putin is sincerely seeking peace," the article says.
On Sunday, before his two-hour conversation with Putin, Trump spoke with European leaders. The US leader said that he could impose sanctions if Russia refused to cease fire.
However, on Monday, he changed his position again and was not ready for such actions.
"This is not my war. We got involved in something we shouldn't have been involved in," the president told reporters after his conversation with Putin.
"Although this attempt did not lead to the imposition of new sanctions, the Europeans did see some positive results. The process helped to clarify Putin's position for everyone, including Trump: he is not ready to stop the war at this time. For Europe, this was a confirmation that support for Ukraine is largely on their shoulders. According to the sources, Europe believes that the Trump administration will not stop exporting American weapons as long as Europe or Ukraine pays for them," the newspaper writes.
During a separate conversation with Macron, Merz, Maloney, and Starmer, the US leader said he would send Marco Rubio and Keith Kellogg to the upcoming talks in the Vatican. In the same conversation, he suggested the possibility of imposing sanctions on Russia's energy and financial sectors.
But the next day, Trump showed less enthusiasm for US involvement in the process.
European leaders insisted that any talks in the Vatican should result in an unconditional ceasefire. Trump, however, again abstained, saying he did not like the word "unconditional."
He said he had never used the term, although he did use it in a post on his Truth Social social media platform on May 8, when he called for a 30-day ceasefire.
