Putin walks on thin ice by offering Trump mineral deal, says sociologist Shulha

He said this during an interview with Espreso.

"Russians still don't understand the goals of the war. The only thing they perceive is that it has become a confrontation with the West, with the United States as their main enemy. Now, as unclear signals come from Trump, there is a sharp shift in Russian propaganda rhetoric toward the U.S.," Shulha explained.

The sociologist noted that Russian propaganda has already undergone a radical change in rhetoric toward the US.

"In Russian propaganda, there is now talk of 'Trump is ours,' and negative remarks about the U.S. are disappearing. However, Putin is actually stepping onto very thin ice. In 2023, we asked Russians whether they agreed that the war was a U.S. trap to weaken Russia. Over 74% of Russians agreed with this statement. Now, as Putin offers U.S. access to Russian resources, including those on the occupied territories of Ukraine, he is essentially confirming this conspiracy theory. In other words, he dragged Russia into the war, weakened it, and is now handing resources to the Americans," he added.

• On February 25, the Kremlin leader invited international partners, including the U.S., to cooperate in the field of rare earth metals, proposing to develop them in the occupied territories of Ukraine.