Trump lacks clear strategy to end Russia-Ukraine war, says international relations expert

He shared his opinions with Espreso TV.

"Trump and his entourage have adopted a more realistic approach to resolving the Russian-Ukrainian war," explained Oleksandr Kraiev. "No one is suggesting anymore that simply calling Putin and Zelenskyy once will end the war. They now understand that a preliminary process of preparation for such negotiations is essential. Trump's team maintains constant contact with the Office of the President of Ukraine. Meanwhile, Putin is also trying to reach out to them, as Trump himself stated that it is not he who wants to call the Russian leader, but rather the Russian dictator who seeks to talk to him. This indicates that certain preliminary coordination of positions and mutual exchanges of views are already underway."

According to the expert, Trump's team continues to work in conditions of uncertainty and lack of understanding of its ultimate goals.

“Donald Trump's team does not have a strategic vision for the war in Ukraine. They haven't even developed a strategy for resolving the Russian-Ukrainian war. If they had written a strategy and had a full-fledged vision of the situation, we would have heard clearer and more focused statements from Trump and his team. Now there are many differences and many inaccuracies within his administration. When some people talk about the end of negotiations in six months, and others say that such negotiations will only begin in six months. That is, they work in conditions of uncertainty and lack of understanding of their ultimate goals,” he added. 

• President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Putin would try to play along with Donald Trump by repeating the same military and political trick he used in 2019.
• On January 13, Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that there was “no substantive preparation” for Putin's meeting with Trump, commenting on proposals by Serbia and Switzerland to organize it on their territories.
• On January 15, Bloomberg reported that Vladimir Putin will demand that Kyiv sever military ties with NATO and recognize Russia's control over nearly 20% of Ukraine's territory, including annexed Crimea, in any talks with future U.S. President Donald Trump.