Trump’s New Position on the War in Ukraine: Not My Problem
In a reversal, President Trump appears to have backed off joining a European push for new sanctions on Russia, seemingly eager to move on to doing business deals with it.
Trump told President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine and other European leaders after his call with Mr. Putin that Russia and Ukraine would have to find a solution to the war themselves, just days after saying that only he and Mr. Putin had the power to broker a deal. And he backed away from his own threats to join a European pressure campaign that would include new sanctions on Russia, according to six officials who were familiar with the discussion. They spoke on condition of anonymity to describe a private conversation.
Their account sheds light on Mr. Trump’s decision to throw up his hands when it comes to a peace process that he had previously promised to resolve in just 24 hours. And, unless he again reverses course, Monday’s developments left Mr. Putin with exactly what he wanted: not only an end to American pressure, but the creation of a deep fissure inside the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, between the Americans and their traditional European allies, who say they are going ahead with sanctions anyway.
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Trump, of course, is usually a fan of financial pressure: He routinely threatens tariffs and sanctions against allies and adversaries alike. But in a statement to The New York Times, a White House official said this was different. The official, who asked for anonymity to discuss the president’s private calls, said additional sanctions against Russia would hinder business opportunities and the president wants to maximize economic opportunities for Americans.
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For Mr. Trump, that is a reversal. In social media posts in recent months he episodically threatened tariffs and sanctions against Russia if it refused to join Ukraine in declaring a 30-day, unconditional cease-fire.
For Mr. Trump, that is a reversal. In social media posts in recent months he episodically threatened tariffs and sanctions against Russia if it refused to join Ukraine in declaring a 30-day, unconditional cease-fire.
But after Mr. Trump’s call with Mr. Putin on Monday, those commitments evaporated. The American president declined, both in public and in his call with the European leaders, to follow up on that threat.
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Mr. Trump had famously promised during the campaign that he would bring about peace between Russia and Ukraine in 24 hours — portraying it as easy work for a master negotiator. He has since discovered it is much more difficult than he imagined, and he now says he was being “a little bit sarcastic” when he floated that timeline.
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...he made clear in his post on Monday that he was eager to pull the United States out of the discussions and move on to doing business deals with Russia.
The conditions to end the war, Mr. Trump wrote, “will be negotiated between the two parties, as it can only be, because they know details of a negotiation that nobody else would be aware of.”
Then he pivoted to what some European leaders believe is his real goal: a normalization of relations between Washington and Moscow.
“Russia wants to do largescale TRADE with the United States when this catastrophic ‘bloodbath’ is over, and I agree,” Mr. Trump added. “There is a tremendous opportunity for Russia to create massive amounts of jobs and wealth. Its potential is UNLIMITED.”
The conditions to end the war, Mr. Trump wrote, “will be negotiated between the two parties, as it can only be, because they know details of a negotiation that nobody else would be aware of.”
Then he pivoted to what some European leaders believe is his real goal: a normalization of relations between Washington and Moscow.
“Russia wants to do largescale TRADE with the United States when this catastrophic ‘bloodbath’ is over, and I agree,” Mr. Trump added. “There is a tremendous opportunity for Russia to create massive amounts of jobs and wealth. Its potential is UNLIMITED.”
