Trump moves to shield Putin from looming defeat in Ukraine, Polish lawmaker says

He shared this view on Espreso TV.

“When analyzing what both Putin and Trump are doing, one might say too much knowledge can be harmful to health,” Czech remarked. “They aren’t thinking in nuanced terms about what happened three years ago, and so on. Their current goal is different. Donald Trump’s mission is to save Russia and Putin from the inevitable—specifically, from losing the war against Ukraine and the broader standoff with the West. Military analysts and economists agree that the conditions for Russia’s defeat are already in place. If the U.S. imposed the sanctions European leaders are calling for, then we could say Trump is truly trying to end this war and pressure Putin into peace.”

Czech emphasized that Putin is not seeking a peaceful resolution to the war. Instead, the Russian leader is convinced he can force Ukraine into surrender through military means.

“Right now, Putin doesn’t believe he’s losing on the battlefield. On the contrary, he thinks a summer offensive could turn the war in his favor. At that point, he would dictate the terms of Ukraine’s capitulation,” Czech explained. 

“As for Trump, he’s acting purely to keep Russia and Putin from losing. He’s followed this logic since the beginning of his presidency.”

Ukraine-Russia peace talks in Istanbul

In a nighttime address on May 11, Russian leader Vladimir Putin claimed he was ready for direct talks with Ukraine in Turkey next week, but he dismissed the idea of a 30-day truce. In response, U.S. President Donald Trump said he would keep working with both sides and predicted that the coming week would be “great.”

On May 12, the German government announced that if Russia did not agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine by the end of the day, European partners would begin preparations for new sanctions. In contrast, the Kremlin stated that “the language of ultimatums is unacceptable for Russia.”

Advisor to the head of the Ukrainian President's Office, Mykhailo Podolyak, said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would not meet with any Russian representative other than Vladimir Putin in Turkey on May 15. Later, Zelenskyy himself confirmed his personal visit to Turkey for a meeting with Putin.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said the talks in Istanbul with Kyiv should recognize the "realities on the ground," including Russia’s incorporation of Ukraine’s temporarily occupied territories.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that if his meeting with the Russian leader takes place on May 15 in Turkey, the main topics of discussion will be a complete ceasefire and a full exchange of prisoners of war.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that on the evening of May 14, Russian leader Vladimir Putin held a meeting to prepare for talks with Kyiv in Istanbul.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin will not be present during the talks between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Turkey on May 15.

On the morning of May 15, President Zelenskyy arrived in Ankara and met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.