US President Donald Trump (R) and Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan, 28 June 2019. Photo: Susan Walsh / AP
Moscow – Russian strategist Dmitry Trenin has expressed scepticism about Donald Trump’s promise to end the war in Ukraine in one day, noting that Moscow sees such a prospect as unlikely. In his article in Kommersant, Trenin explained that the Kremlin does not believe in the possibility of a quick end to the conflict and stressed Russia’s demands regarding Ukraine’s political and military status.
“The readiness to end the war is not just about stopping the fighting, but about addressing the causes that led to it,” Trenin writes, pointing out that Moscow will not be satisfied with a solution based on the current front line, seeing it as just a pause before the next wave of conflict.
For Russia, he said, the key issues remain the future regime in Ukraine, its military capabilities and the territorial “realities” that have changed as a result of the war. Trenin emphasised that these positions echo the Kremlin’s initial demands for the “demilitarisation” and “denazification” of Ukraine.
Trenin also praised Trump’s intention to reduce military aid to Ukraine as a step that would “bring peace closer”, although he believes that the new US administration is unlikely to agree to discuss Russia’s interests.
Ukrainian authorities remain optimistic about future US support even under Trump. Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the Ukrainian president, expressed hope that Washington would not allow the conflict to end on Russia’s terms. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated Trump on his victory and expressed hope that bipartisan support for Ukraine in the United States would continue.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that a quick end to the war looks unrealistic, noting that the US could help end the conflict, but not overnight.
