US President Donald Trump addressed Russian President Vladimir Putin in an unusually harsh manner last night, urging him to stop the bombing of Ukraine and agree to a peace agreement after the deadliest attack in Kiev in nearly a year, the “New York Times“ wrote, BTA reported in its press review.
The Russian missile attack came a day after the Trump administration threatened to abandon peace talks if Ukraine did not accept an American peace proposal that greatly favors Russia, the publication notes. The plan, which includes blocking Ukraine from ever joining NATO, was rejected by President Volodymyr Zelensky, which angered Trump, it added.
While Trump has made it clear that his patience for negotiating a peace deal between the two countries is running out, he has also preemptively sought to deflect blame if talks fail, a sign that he may be more pessimistic than he was when he returned to the White House earlier this year, confident in his negotiating skills, the New York Times reported.
Amid Trump's persistent calls for a deal, speculation has emerged that the US president wants Russia and Ukraine to agree to a ceasefire before his first 100 days in office expire on April 30, the newspaper reported. “Guardian“.
The publication notes that Trump boasts that he is putting pressure on Vladimir Putin to end the war, and according to him it would be “a pretty big concession“ if he manages to get Moscow to agree not to take over the whole country.
The British newspaper also quotes the “Bloomberg“ agency, according to which Washington will oppose Russia's demand that Ukraine be “demilitarized“ as part of a possible peace agreement. US special envoy Steve Witkoff will insist during his next meeting with Putin that Kiev retain the right to maintain its own army and defense industry, the Guardian reports.
However, Washington is increasingly frustrated as Ukraine resists US efforts to conclude a quick agreement to end the war and Kiev refuses to yield to pressure to agree to a proposal that many in Ukraine see as unfair, the Washington Post reports.
Nevertheless, Trump's team remains focused on the Ukraine talks as his advisers seek a much-needed victory for the president, whose reputation has suffered from the tariff fiasco, the American capital's edition comments.
Yet even the most skilled mediators cannot achieve much if there are no conditions for lasting peace, the British newspaper writes. “Telegraph“. Ultimately, it is the parties directly involved in the conflict who will determine whether Trump's efforts succeed or fail, the publication points out.
It would be easy to place the blame for the failure of Trump's approach so far solely on his shoulders - after all, he is the president, the newspaper commented. However, the relative power of the United States on the international stage at the moment must also be taken into account, notes the “Telegraph“.
The United States is still the most powerful military and economic power in the world, but no country, even a superpower, can bend the rest of the world to its will, resolve every dispute or bear every burden, the newspaper writes.
A sensible president must know how to act within the realities of the international system - otherwise he risks being left empty-handed, bitter and disappointed, concludes the “Telegraph“.