"Wants to be linked to victories only": international affairs expert on why Trump skipped Saudi Arabia talks

He shared his opinions with Espreso TV.

"In political science terms, Trump still prepares for summits in a relatively traditional manner. As you know, summits require prior groundwork—you can’t simply show up unprepared. There needs to be progress on issues already discussed by teams, ministries, deputy ministers, and ministers themselves.

From a psychological perspective, Trump always seeks to associate himself solely with victories. He doesn’t want to be linked to intermediate results. If he makes a statement, it must lead to action. If he meets with someone, there must be a tangible outcome. Even if things don’t always go as planned, he still needs to present it as a success," he said.

Kraiev also pointed out that President Trump avoids negotiations regarding the war in Ukraine because he understands that there will be no quick solutions.

"That's why, for example, he was very disappointed after his meeting with Kim Jong-un. He expected an immediate agreement, believing that everything would be signed on the spot and his visit would be a success. Instead, it turned out to be a waste of time—no agreement, no ceasefire, no halt to missile testing.

I believe Trump is avoiding such situations now because, first, he understands there won’t be quick results, and second, he doesn’t want to be associated with a process that might fail. Of course, we, along with our colleagues in Ukraine and abroad, will do everything possible to ensure that Trump and the failure of these negotiations are clearly linked. But he is doing his best to avoid responsibility while attaching his name only to successes. That’s why, in my view, his wait-and-see approach is purely driven by his need to always be seen as a winner," the expert added.

Negotiations in Saudi Arabia

Ukrainian and American delegations arrived in Saudi Arabia on March 11 for talks. This marked the first official meeting between representatives of Ukraine and the United States after the dispute at the White House.

Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Heorhiy Tykhyi reported that the delegations would discuss bilateral relations, strategic partnership, and the path to peace.

Reuters reported that the United States had planned to use the meeting in Saudi Arabia to assess whether Ukraine was ready to make material concessions to Russia for the sake of ending the war.