'Russia’s desperate attempt to delay inevitable fiasco': diplomat on Putin-Trump call

Volodymyr Omelyan, Ukrainian Major, diplomat, and former Infrastructure Minister (2016–2019), shared his opinions on Espreso TV.

“This is Russia’s desperate attempt to delay an inevitable fiasco. They’ve deployed all their resources, the traditional balalaika, and maybe it had some effect. But we shouldn’t jump to conclusions,” Omelyan said.

According to the diplomat, there were many different versions, but Russia suddenly claimed that it was they who initiated the conversation between Trump and Putin.

“Perhaps they are trying to save Trump this way, or perhaps it’s true that Putin, realizing the inevitable outcome since the U.S. has publicly started declaring full support for Ukraine, tried with this call to save the situation. But I am convinced that globally, nothing will change for Ukraine. The U.S. will remain our ally,” Omelyan emphasized.

• On October 16, U.S. President Donald Trump had a phone call with Russian leader Vladimir Putin and announced that he had agreed with him on a meeting in Budapest.