For once, the US president and European leaders were on the same page.
In capturing an acquaintance metaphor, a Western Headquarters course announced this week that Ukraine was “the ball was in Russia court” after agreeing to talk with the United States on a 30 -day ceasefire on Tuesday.
On Thursday, Vladimir Putin picked up the ball instead of making a drama, raised a fresh set of conditions above it, and surpassed it – insisting that the game could not move forward until it played its rules.
“This idea is true itself, and we certainly support it,” said Putin, sitting with his longtime alienser Alexander Lukashenko at a press conference in the Kremlin.
It was “but” after which he did all the heavy lifting.
He added, “There are questions that we need to discuss, and I think we need to talk to them with our US colleagues and colleagues,” he added, adding that Ukraine should neither re -surgery nor dynamic nor dynamic, and Western military support for Kiev during ceasefire.
Meanwhile, this message was clear: Russia had no plans to stop its re -image. Ukraine fears that Putin is preparing to do exactly what he accuses Kiev – when the conversation ends, he exploited the war to accelerate his aggression and accelerate its action, as Russian forces press its advantage.
During the past month, the geographical political land renovation has changed dramatically in favor of the Russian leader, as Donald Trump turned US foreign policy into the benefit of Moscow, while pressing relations with US allies.
But introducing a joint firefire proposal by the United States and Ukraine turned the tables on Putin, forcing them to go on the growing tension between their ambitions for a decisive victory in Ukraine and their efforts to maintain close ties with Trump.
Putin was seen buying timely, clearly, about rejecting Trump’s proposal – walking a fine line between avoiding open rebellion of Trump’s peace measures and imposing his difficult conditions by imposing negotiations.
For his fans, it was a masterclass in Putin’s diplomatic plans, which was tied to the veterans of the veteran foreign policy, Sergey Lavrov and Yuri Ishakov – with these two decades of experience.
“Putin used one of his favorite phrases … a firm ‘yes, but …” Cogged Russia’s Kamanta newspaper chief political reporter Andrei Kolskov and one of the few journalists with direct access to the president.
Ukraine’s president, Wolodmeer Zelinsky, saw Putin’s proportional reaction as another blasphemous tactic, which rejected him as a “manipulation”.
Putin, he said, “President Trump was afraid to say that he wanted to continue the war”, and accusing the Russian leader of “a ceasefire theory with such pre -conditions that nothing will work, or as long as possible”.
For a long time observers, it was a familiar Russian tactic. Moscow has long been delayed in negotiations, and has only offered the hope of progress to keep the dialogue alive, avoiding great privileges.
Putin’s remarks and Zelinski’s response have created a clear distribution line between positions on both sides.
Ukraine has imagined a two -step approach: immediately after the ceasefire negotiated for a long -term settlement in support of Western security guarantees.
On the other hand, Russia insists that both matters should be resolved under the same, comprehensive agreement – one that is more than a simple ceasefire.
On Thursday, Russia’s demands were discussed behind the closed doors, when Putin spoke late last night with Trump’s billionaire friend and chief Ukraine negotiator Steven Watkov.
Moscow is expected to emphasize the sweeping privileges, including eliminating Ukraine, eliminating Western military aid and guarantees that Kiev will remain outside NATO.
The deployment of foreign troops in Ukraine remains a non -starter for Moscow, seeking to recognize its claims internationally in 2022 and four regions of Ukraine. Putin can restore a widespread security demands from 2021, after joining NATO’s military presence since 1997, when joined his previous communication, when joined his previous communication.
The Washington Post reported Friday, By referring One of the earliest this month, including US intelligence studies, has been ranked that the Russian president “did not refrain from his maximum purpose to dominate Ukraine”.
Under his pressure on the agreement to stop the war in Ukraine, Trump started with low-executed fruits-which put pressure on Ukrainian President Zillski, whose military relys on US support.
Alexander Bonov, a political analyst at Carnegie Endowment, said Alexander Bonov, a political analyst for international peace, but Trump had “some powers to” be rejected by Russian or to comply. “
Although Trump promised to accelerate sanctions against Russia, the fact was that the United States had a little room to increase pressure – on the one hand, he increased military support, which he said he was reluctant to do.
Instead, Bonov argued, the most effective way to influence Russia would be a carrot instead of a stick – which offers the possibility of rid of sanctions in Western economies and the possibility of re -unity.
From the beginning, Trump returned to normal relations as a financial investment and a concession for Russia, or as his transaction administration has said, “incredible opportunities for partnership with the Russians” – both geographical and economically.
But there was a very deep possibility for Ukraine.
Bonov said, “It faced the fact that Putin had no real benefit for an immediate deal, Trump could once again connect himself with the Russian leader.
