I spoke with Vicky Ward about the recent meetings between Trump, Zelensky and European leaders in Washington, and between Trump and Putin in Alaska. Vicky asked me whether these summits brought any progress or security guarantees for Ukraine — and I believe they did not. To me, these gatherings are mostly about photo opportunities and appearances, not about real decisions or meaningful steps toward peace.
We also discussed how Putin used the stage to lecture both Trump and journalists about history — from Alaska to World War II — instead of addressing the war in Ukraine. It is also obvious that Putin is not afraid of sanctions anymore. He doesn’t believe Trump would actually make Russia’s economic situation worse — for example, Trump is unlikely to ban Russian oil. Instead, Putin is betting on personal flattery: praising Trump, while blaming everything on Biden.
And that is why there is still no plan for negotiations between Putin and Zelensky, no path toward a ceasefire, and no serious commitment to ending the war.
