WASHINGTON — 2 hundred and ten days after the day he mentioned he would finish Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, President Donald Trump once more failed to take action Monday, solely this time within the firm of Ukraine’s chief and 7 of his prime European allies.
“I think that President Putin wants to find an answer, too, and we’ll see. And in a certain period of time, not very far from now, a week or two weeks, we’re going to know whether or not we’re going to solve this,” Trump mentioned, slipping into his acquainted time-frame of different targets he by no means achieved, reminiscent of the discharge of his plans for well being care or infrastructure — and one he has beforehand offered a number of occasions for the way lengthy it could take to know if Russian dictator Vladimir Putin was critical about ending his battle.
What occurs subsequent is unclear. Trump once more floated the thought of Zelenskyy, Putin and himself assembly, however there is no such thing as a indication that Putin is fascinated with stopping both his invasion pressure or his nightly drone and missile assaults towards civilian targets.
Putin’s situation for doing so is for Ukraine to provide him the land within the jap a part of the nation that he has been unable to take by pressure for 3 and a half years.
In a information convention following the White Home assembly, Zelenskyy mentioned that Russia had agreed to a gathering between him and Putin, whereas German Chancellor Friedrich Merz mentioned he, certainly, expects it to happen inside the subsequent two weeks.
Trump’s feedback got here at the beginning of a gathering with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the heads of the European Union, NATO and 5 separate Western European nations.
The impromptu protection summit got here collectively inside days of Trump’s Friday assembly with Putin, which ended with none obvious progress and definitely with out the ceasefire Trump had mentioned he would insist upon.
Quickly afterward, it was introduced that Zelenskyy would come to Washington to satisfy with Trump on Monday — presumably to stop Putin’s clarification and rationale for his invasion from taking root in Trump’s thoughts and turning into his personal.
The final time Zelenskyy visited the White Home in February, each Trump and Vice President JD Vance attacked and insulted him — remedy that was considered with horror in European capitals. Inside two days of the announcement of Zelenskyy’s Monday assembly, Merz, NATO Secretary Normal Mark Rutte, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and European Fee President Ursula von der Leyen all introduced that they might be attending, as effectively.
“I’m very thankful to all the leaders who are here, and you help a lot,” Zelenskyy mentioned at the beginning of the group assembly with Trump on Monday afternoon.
Rutte, who praised Trump repeatedly at June’s NATO summit in The Hague as a part of an total technique by European leaders of flattering him to win him over, continued Monday. “I really want to thank you, president of the United States, dear Donald, for the fact that you, as I said before, broke the deadlock basically with President Putin by starting that dialogue,” Rutte mentioned.
Trump, for his half, continued to say that Putin likes and respects him, regardless of all proof on the contrary. “I think he wants to make a deal for me,” he instructed the others as they waited for the press pool to be escorted into the East Room.
His remark was captured by a microphone that was, evidently unbeknownst to him, already reside.
Why Trump believes that, if he truly does, is just not readily obvious.
Trump primarily took Russia’s facet in its invasion of its neighbor throughout his first few months in workplace after having known as Putin “savvy” and a “genius” within the days after the battle started in February 2022. In latest months, Trump has mentioned he has turn into exasperated by Putin’s continued assaults on Ukrainian civilians. However whereas he has spoken about holding Putin accountable for the slaughter, to date, he has executed little or nothing to attain that.
An Aug. 8 deadline for Putin to declare a ceasefire or face extra financial sanctions got here and went with no motion. Trump then eagerly agreed to satisfy Putin in Alaska and actually rolled out the pink carpet to greet him.
Trump once more claimed forward of that assembly that Putin would face a penalty if he refused to finish his nightly assaults on Ukrainian civilians and his persevering with invasion.
“There will be very severe consequences,” he mentioned Wednesday throughout a go to to the Kennedy Middle.
On the flight out to Alaska, Trump mentioned the entire level of the journey was to get a ceasefire. “I want to see a ceasefire rapidly. I don’t know if it’s going to be today, but I’m not going to be happy if it’s not today,” he instructed reporters on Air Power One.
All that speak evaporated, although, after assembly his benefactor within the 2016 election head to head. Trump didn’t communicate to reporters after the journey, however in an interview with unofficial adviser and Fox Information host Sean Hannity, he mentioned the burden was now on Zelenskyy and European leaders.
“Make a deal, got to make a deal. Russia is a very big power, and they’re not,” he mentioned when requested what recommendation he would give Zelenskyy.
