US President Donald Trump told European leaders that Russian leader Vladimir Putin is not ready to end the war because he considers himself the winner. About this writes The Wall Street Journal citing informed sources, noting that this is the first time Trump has directly acknowledged this fact.
“This recognition was something European leaders had long understood about Putin, but it was the first time they had heard it from Trump. It also contradicted what Trump has often said publicly: that he believes Putin sincerely wants peace,” writes the publication.
At the same time, this understanding has not forced Trump to do what the Europeans and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky want him to do — redouble the fight against Russia.
According to WSJ sources, on Sunday — the day before his call with Putin — Trump met with European leaders and made it clear during the conversation that he could impose sanctions if Putin refused to accept the ceasefire. However, by Monday he had changed his mind again, abandoning the plans and instead Trump said that he wanted to quickly start lower-level talks between Russia and Ukraine in the Vatican.
At the same time, the Europeans saw some advantages in this situation, the publication notes. Putin's position became clear to everyone, including Trump: he does not want to end the war at this stage. And for the Europeans, this helped emphasize that now support for Ukraine depends mainly on them:
"Europeans do not believe that the Trump administration will stop exporting American weapons as long as Europe or Ukraine pays for them, the publication's sources say."
Trump's conversation with European leaders - details
Some Europeans insisted on Monday that any talks in the Vatican, which are set to begin in mid-June, should result in an unconditional ceasefire. But Trump again dodged the question, saying he didn’t like the term “unconditional.” He said he had never used the term, although he did when he called for a 30-day ceasefire in a post on his social media platform Truth on May 8. The Europeans eventually agreed to drop the adjective.
Sources also told the WSJ that in a Sunday phone call between Trump and European leaders, Trump, in his typical mix of praise and criticism, praised Merz for his excellent English.
"I like him even more with your German accent," he said, according to one of the participants in the conversation.
At another point, he moved on to harsh criticism of Europe's migration policies, saying that uncontrolled migration was bringing their countries to the "brink of collapse."
Macron, who has the longest-standing relationship with Trump, asked him to stop.
"You can't insult our people, Donald," — Macron said, according to the interlocutor.
But the tone was generally positive, people familiar with the conversation said. Some had the impression that Trump might support new sanctions if Putin did not agree to a ceasefire. But those hopes were dashed the next day.
Trump and the war in Ukraine
Trump's reluctance to push Russia toward a ceasefire suggests that he may distance himself from negotiations and efforts to end the war. This is precisely what the signals coming from both the US president himself and his team (including Vice President Vance and Secretary of State Rubio) over the past few weeks boil down to.
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