Trump Posts Photos with Putin to Compare with Historical Ones, US Media Say He Shows a “Tough Stance”
“It’s very difficult or even impossible to win a war without attacking the ‘invader’.” U.S. President Trump suggested on social media on the 21st that he was open to more attacks by Ukraine on Russia. He said, “It’s like an excellent sports team that’s great at defense but doesn’t allow itself to attack. There’s no chance to win!” Trump also criticized former U.S. President Biden for his “inability” because he “didn’t let Ukraine counterattack, only defending.” Bloomberg reported that Trump’s suggestion that Ukraine should launch offensive against Russia might be a way to pressure Russian President Putin.
In subsequent posts, Trump shared two photos. One was him pointing at Putin’s chest after their meeting in Alaska on the 15th; the other was a photo of former U.S. Vice President Nixon making a similar gesture to Soviet leader Khrushchev in the last century. Reports suggest that the United States is trying to further pressure Putin into agreeing to a separate meeting with Ukrainian President Zelensky. Trump seemed to show a tough stance through this and refute criticism that he was too lenient during his meeting with Putin. Reports said that Trump held a meeting with Zelensky and several European leaders at the White House on the 18th. Afterwards, he instructed U.S. government officials to coordinate with Russia and Ukraine to arrange a meeting between their leaders, followed by a trilateral meeting between Russia, the United States, and Ukraine. However, Russia has not yet committed to a meeting between the two leaders, and the date and location of the meeting have not been determined.
Regarding the Ukraine issue, Trump said in an interview with an American radio station on the 21st that he would “have to adopt other strategies” after knowing the result in “about two weeks.”
According to a report by The Guardian on the 21st, U.S. government officials revealed that Trump intended to temporarily withdraw from mediating the negotiations on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, not directly participating but allowing Putin and Zelensky to arrange a bilateral meeting themselves. Trump recently told his advisors that he planned to hold a trilateral meeting between Russia, the United States, and Ukraine after the first meeting between Russian and Ukrainian leaders. A senior U.S. government official said Trump was “waiting and seeing” about whether a meeting between Russian and Ukrainian leaders could be arranged. There has been little substantive progress in recent days, and the White House does not have a list of potential meeting locations.
Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister, stated in an interview with NBC on the 22nd that Putin was prepared to meet with Zelensky only when the agenda for the meeting was ready, but “the agenda is not ready yet.” Lavrov said that Putin explicitly expressed that he would be willing to meet as long as there was a clear agenda for the meeting, which is an “agenda at the presidential level.” Lavrov also implied that Ukraine was the factor hindering the progress of the peace agreement. He said that Trump proposed some views that Russia认同 during the Russia-US summit, and Russia was willing to “show some flexibility” on some issues. The United States believes that several principles must be accepted, including Ukraine not joining NATO and discussing territorial issues. However, during his meeting with Trump in Washington, Zelensky “said ‘no’ to all issues.”
According to the Ukrainian news agency, Zelensky stated in a video speech on the evening of the 21st that pressure must be applied to Russia to force it to end the war, “Putin only understands force and pressure.” Previously, Zelensky said that Ukraine was prepared for bilateral leadership meetings between Ukraine and Russia and trilateral meetings between Ukraine, the United States, and Russia, but if Russia refused, Ukraine would ask the United States to impose new sanctions on Russia.
Bloomberg reported on the 21st that due to Russia’s attitude, the West’s efforts to provide security guarantees to Ukraine “almost immediately encountered difficulties,” and doubts about the security plan are increasing. According to reports, several senior European officials and diplomats said that Lavrov seemed to “downplay” the prospect of a meeting between Putin and Zelensky. Russia’s opposition to security guarantees actually “broke down negotiations between Russia and the United States,” trying to delay the process. Russia may now try to persuade the United States to abandon promoting security guarantees for Ukraine and downgrade the meeting between Putin and Zelensky to a lower-level official meeting to avoid new sanctions from the United States against Russia.
Russia’s Lianta network reported on the 22nd that Russia opposed deploying NATO troops in Ukraine, which was a principle position for Russia. European attempts to send troops to Ukraine were not helpful for starting negotiations between Russia and Ukraine after the meeting between Russian and European leaders. The Ukrainian “national network” reported on the 22nd that due to Russia’s opposition, discussing the deployment of European troops in Ukraine at this stage “seemed meaningless,” as it would be included in the framework of an agreement to end the conflict and require agreement from all parties including Russia.