L to R: Poland Prime Minister Donald Tusk, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Ukraine President Voloydmyr Zelensky, France President Emmanuel Macron, and Germany Chancellor Friedrich Merz in the grounds of the Mariynsky Palace in Kyiv, Ukraine, May 10, 2025 (Ludovic Marin/AP)
Ukraine War, Day 1,174: Will Putin Show Up in Istanbul?
I joined Poland’s TVP World on Monday for a 7-minute analysis of how Ukraine and its European partners, despite the erratic interventions of Donald Trump, have put Vladimir Putin in a diplomatic corner.
I summarize Trump threatening to gate-crash any encounter between Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and Vladimir Putin in Istanbul on Thursday: “His presence would add to the meeting with respect to Donald Trump’s ego, but would his presence help the negotiations?”
I answer that by turning to the Ukraine-Europe ceasefire initiative and Putin trying to evade it.
If we were talking about negotiations that had any chance of proceeding towards an agreement, it would be a hindrance if Trump was there.
But let’s be honest. If there is a meeting on Thursday in Turkey, Putin is not there to negotiate or discuss a ceasefire because the Kremlin is maintain its maximum demands.
So Zelensky has welcomed Trump’s presence to flatter the reality TV star.
The real task for Ukraine and Europe is not to reach a negotiated settlement with Moscow — I don’t think that is possible — it is to ensure a security guarantee and ongoing military and financial aid for Ukraine while Russia maintains its invasion.
You would rather have the US in on that than standing aside. So play to Trump, let him come. If Putin comes, he is unlikely to negotiate — let Trump see that.
We also discuss the real significance of the Ukraine-US minerals deal, and consider what additional sanctions the Europeans can impose on Russia.
