Trump hasn't been asked to mediate

I just love the kind of analysis that screams either “everything is lost” or “this is a breakthrough.”

In reality, almost nothing has changed.

As I said yesterday, after the call, Trump went right back to his cringey “Dear friend Vladimir” routine. At the same time, he’s out there saying he might impose sanctions, or he might not. In short, classic Trump — saying completely opposite things in the same conversation.

The panic over “the Americans will now leave the talks” — what’s that even about? First of all, no one invited the Americans. Trump just decided on his own to shift from being Ukraine’s partner to pretending to be a mediator (basically, a partner of Putin). So if that’s over, good riddance. Second, serious negotiations that could actually end the war aren’t realistic right now.

"People saying that U.S. involvement in the talks is some huge asset forget that Trump’s not at the table to help us. First, he wanted to pressure us into surrender. Now, at best, he’s trying to push us into concessions. He’s not an honest mediator."

Besides, when Putin is finally ready for real talks, we won’t need anyone else at the table. That moment will only come when he sees that continuing the war is too risky. That’s it, there are no other scenarios.

At that point, we’ll need a mediator. But not Trump. Countries like Turkey or one of the Arab states — say, the UAE or Qatar — are a better fit. They’d actually stand to gain something from successful mediation.

So the game will go on.

Ukraine, Europe, and the sane part of the U.S. will keep trying to show Trump that Putin doesn’t respect him. Just to nudge this pathetic narcissist into making at least one halfway-decent decision. Even if it’s just out of a wounded ego.

Meanwhile, pressure on Russia will keep building with the tools we have now. European weapons and funding for Ukraine will keep coming. So will Biden’s aid packages.

A tough summer is ahead. But after that, the window for talks will open wider. Because Russia will be weaker.

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About the author. Yurii Bohdanov, publicist, strategic communications specialist.

The editorial staff does not always share the opinions expressed by the blog authors.