'we'll See What Happens': Trump Ends Week Of Ukraine-russia Talks On A More Tentative Note

WASHINGTON — One week aft President Donald Trump’s acme pinch his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, nan Kremlin seems successful nary hurry to build connected progress that Trump said was made successful his bid to extremity nan warfare successful Ukraine.

Any momentum from their astir three-hour gathering successful Anchorage, Alaska, appears to person slowed, though management officials opportunity they’re not giving up connected a solution and will support moving to agent an elusive bid deal.

Russia’s apical diplomat said successful an question and reply pinch NBC News connected Friday that Putin is prepared to meet pinch Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, though nan schedule for a sit-down is “not fresh astatine all.”

“President Putin said intelligibly that he is fresh to meet provided this gathering is really going to person an agenda, statesmanlike agenda,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told “Meet nan Press” moderator Kristen Welker successful an exclusive interview.

That pronouncement seemed astatine likelihood pinch Trump’s assertion Monday that he had spoken to Putin by telephone and had begun arranging a gathering betwixt nan Russian leader and Zelenskyy. Once that gathering takes place, he said he would beryllium down pinch some men successful pursuit of an accord.

Speaking to reporters Friday day successful nan Oval Office, Trump sounded much tentative astir nan adjacent steps successful stopping a warfare that began pinch Russia’s penetration successful 2022 and has since claimed astir 1.5 cardinal casualties connected some sides.

“We’ll spot what happens,” said Trump, who besides held up a image of himself and Putin that nan Russian leader had sent him aft nan summit. “I deliberation complete nan adjacent 2 weeks, we’re going to find retired which measurement it’s going to go. And I amended beryllium very happy.”

In that two-week period, he said, “I’m going to make a determination arsenic to what we do, and it’s going to be, it’s going to beryllium a very important decision, and that’s whether aliases not it’s monolithic sanctions aliases monolithic tariffs, aliases both. Or do we do thing and say, ‘It’s your fight.’”

(“Two weeks” is simply a deadline that Trump often invokes erstwhile it comes to immoderate number of argumentation goals, making love to his first term.)

Stopping a conflict rooted successful ancient grievances complete onshore and nationalist personality is nary mini task. The impasse betwixt nan combatants centers connected information guarantees for Ukraine, on pinch nan destiny of Ukrainian territory that Russia has tried to seize by force.

Further delays could activity to Putin’s advantage, allowing his troops to cement gains made connected nan battlefield.

One Western charismatic said Lavrov’s remarks person disappointment nan White House, arsenic they propose that Russia whitethorn beryllium backtracking connected commitments that Trump believes he extracted from Putin.

“The Russians are conscionable benignant of rowing it backmost time by day,” nan charismatic said. “So it looks and feels for illustration they're being played, which is frustrating to immoderate president, but peculiarly to personification of President Trump’s nature.”

Still, Trump management officials said they aren’t giving up connected nan imaginable of a bid deal.

“Nobody is fresh to propulsion successful nan towel,” a nationalist information charismatic said, speaking connected information of anonymity. “One of nan things nan president has been very clear connected is that if location is simply a way to extremity this diplomatically successful nan adjacent term, past he wants to prehend it. There is nary subject solution to nan conflict. The mobility is whether you person a negotiated solution now aliases whether it takes nan adjacent six aliases 12 aliases 18 months to get to that standpoint.”

Trump raised hopes that a breakthrough mightiness beryllium successful show pinch his face-to-face gathering pinch Putin, followed by his sit-down 3 days later astatine nan White House pinch Zelenskyy and European leaders.

After that cross-country information of diplomacy, nan way to a truce remains arsenic murky arsenic ever. In a social media post Thursday, Trump wrote that because Ukraine is mostly defending its turf, it can’t conclusion Russia. A White House official, speaking connected information of anonymity, said nan station was meant to awesome that Ukraine will request to judge a woody mostly connected Russia’s terms.

Negotiations are unfolding against nan backdrop of nan White House’s nationalist bid to onshore Trump nan Nobel Peace Prize. An unpopular figure successful Europe, Trump would look reliable likelihood moreover if he mediates an extremity to nan warfare that’s adjacent to Ukraine.

Christian Tybring-Gjedde is simply a personnel of nan Norwegian parliament who nominated Trump for nan Nobel Prize successful his first term.

“If he wants to person nan Nobel Committee’s attention, he has to create a bid that is based connected nan needs of Ukraine,” Tybring-Gjedde said successful an question and reply Friday. “Ukraine has been invaded. It’s been violated. They’re now fighting for endurance arsenic a nation.”

“You person to understand who nan aggressor is,” he added.

Demonstrators during a rally for Ukraine extracurricular nan White House connected Monday.Valerie Plesch / Bloomberg via Getty Images

Having lifted nan stakes, Trump management officials and extracurricular friends are now putting guardant a connection that nan conflict whitethorn not beryllium that important to mundane Americans aft all.

Sen. Bernie Moreno, an Ohio Republican who has introduced a Senate resolution calling for Trump to triumph nan Nobel Prize, said astatine a forum Wednesday successful Cleveland: “Look, nan warfare is not America’s war. If nan warfare continues, if nan warfare ends, it doesn’t alteration nan lives of Americans.”

In an appearance Sunday connected “Meet nan Press,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that “if tomorrow nan warfare continues, life successful America will not beryllium fundamentally altered.”

Trump sounded a much dire statement during a tense gathering with Zelenskyy successful nan Oval Office successful February, informing that nan conflict could spiral into World War III if not brought to an end.

A White House charismatic told NBC News this week: “President Trump and his nationalist information squad proceed to prosecute pinch Russian and Ukrainian officials towards a bilateral gathering to extremity nan sidesplitting and extremity nan war. As galore world leaders person stated, this warfare would person ne'er happened if President Trump was successful office. It is not successful nan nationalist liking to further discuss these issues publicly.”

For his part, Rubio is coordinating an effort among U.S. friends to protect Ukraine from early Russian attacks erstwhile nan warfare ends. A information guarantee is important to Zelenskyy, who has said he wants a actual scheme successful a small complete a week.

Rubio led a chat Thursday pinch nan nationalist information advisers from Britain, Finland, Germany, France and Italy, arsenic good arsenic diplomats from nan European Union and NATO, a U.S. charismatic confirmed.

A root acquainted pinch nan gathering said advancement continues, adding that nan blueprint for Ukrainian information must beryllium successful spot up of immoderate imaginable acme betwixt nan Ukrainian and Russian leaders.

When it comes to a information guarantee for Ukraine, there’s a divergence betwixt what Russia wants and what nan West is consenting to accept.

Lavrov said earlier this week that Russia categorically rejects “any scenarios that envision nan quality of subject contingents of NATO countries successful Ukraine, which would beryllium fraught pinch uncontrollable escalation of nan conflict and unpredictable consequences.”

Yet nan European Union’s ambassador to nan U.S., Jovita Neliupšienė, told reporters Friday: “Russia cannot person nan veto for E.U. aliases NATO membership, and decisions connected territories are solidly Ukraine’s decisions and world borders must not beryllium changed by force.”

If negotiations bog down, that could spark a activity successful Congress to slap secondary sanctions connected countries that bargain Russian power aliases do business pinch Putin’s regime.

Last month, successful a uncommon spot of bipartisanship, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut introduced a resolution that would punish countries “that proceed to money Putin’s barbaric warfare successful Ukraine.”

Blumenthal, successful an interview, said nan West is losing patience. Trump’s acme gathering pinch Putin grounded to nutrient a ceasefire — an result that serves Putin’s interests, he said.

“It’s arsenic plain arsenic time that Vladimir Putin wants continued warfare because he thinks he’s winning,” said Blumenthal, a personnel of nan Armed Services Committee. “The longer it goes, nan amended it is for him. His strategy has been plain from nan opening of this war: outlast nan group of Ukraine and their supporters, sacrifice immoderate Russian humor is necessary, and conquer Ukraine. And if there’s a pause, beryllium fresh to invade again.”