White House called Trump's sharp "attack" on Russia "negotiating tactic" - WP
Kyiv • UNN
US President Donald Trump's angry rhetoric towards Russia is a "negotiating tactic" aimed at pressuring the Kremlin. This approach is driven by Trump's frustration with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.
US President Donald Trump's angry rhetoric towards Russia is a "negotiating tactic" aimed at pressuring the Kremlin. This was stated by a senior White House official after the American leader stunned world politicians and pleased Ukrainian leaders by supporting Kyiv's ambitions for a decisive defeat of Russia, UNN reports with reference to The Washington Post.
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The president's apparent shift in favor of Ukraine regaining all its territory is a sign of Trump's frustration with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, a senior White House official said a month after a red-carpet summit in Alaska between the two leaders yielded few concrete results.
But Trump did not signal a major shift in US policy toward Kyiv during a day at the UN General Assembly, where he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said the official, who, like others, wished to remain anonymous to speak frankly about sensitive diplomatic discussions.
The US president has long hinted that Ukraine would have to cede territory to end the war, so his statement on Tuesday that Kyiv could "take back all of Ukraine in its original form" with proper support was a notable breakthrough.
But hours later, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the UN Security Council that the war would end at the negotiating table, not on the battlefield — a traditional reiteration of existing US policy that hinted that Trump's new approach was not being translated into practical action.
Trump "has long been very frustrated with Putin. He is sending a very strong signal. Russia is a huge country with a huge economy, they have a war economy, and Ukraine can still defend itself for almost four years," the official said. "All he is saying is: look, if Putin doesn't want peace, let the fighting continue, and we will continue to sell weapons to NATO."
When asked if he would support European countries shooting down Russian military aircraft if they violated NATO airspace, Trump also said "yes" on Tuesday, another saber-rattling from the US leader.
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According to another senior White House official, Trump is still considering imposing sanctions on Russia.
Trump demonstrates a habit of switching between harsh rhetoric regarding Ukraine and Russia, depending on which side he believes needs to be persuaded to facilitate negotiations. The result has been successful engagement of both sides with Trump, but it has not yet impacted achieving peace between the countries.