Until recently, it seemed that there was a twist in Trump's policy towards Ukraine. But now the American president seems to be returning to his starting position: he refused cruise missiles to Kiev and wants to meet with the aggressor Putin again.
Before the planned meeting with Russian President Putin, American President Donald Trump expressed skepticism about Ukraine's ability to win the war. "They can still win it. I don't think they will, but they could," Trump recently told reporters at the White House. The war was "a very special circumstance," he added. And more: "A lot of bad things happen. "A lot of good things are happening too."
As ARD recalls, just weeks ago Trump hinted at a possible turnaround in his policy towards Ukraine - with the statement that thanks to EU support, Ukraine could even regain the territories occupied by Russia. Now, however, Trump has backed down from what he had already said.
EU warns against making concessions to Putin
Over the weekend, Trump said that in order to end the fighting in Ukraine, the current front line must be frozen. The turnaround in his statements was apparently a consequence of Putin's call last week, ARD notes. After that, Trump said that a second meeting with the Kremlin chief was planned - after the first, which took place in Alaska in August.
Amid the new rapprochement between the US and Russian presidents, the European Union (EU) warned against making concessions to the Russian president. The EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaia Kalas, said that "the right way is not to put pressure on the victim - Ukraine". We should not forget that "Russia is the aggressor and Ukraine is the victim", she stressed after a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg.
For Europeans, the front line is a basis for negotiations
Meanwhile, many European countries, as well as Ukraine, have declared themselves in favor of perceiving the current front line as a "starting point" for negotiations with Russia. They support US President Donald Trump's position that "the fighting must stop immediately, and that the current line of contact should be the starting point for negotiations," a joint statement said.
The parties also stressed their insistence that Russian assets frozen in the West be used for Ukraine, and that it continue to receive support. "We must increase pressure on the Russian economy and expand arms production until Putin is ready to make peace," the document said. It was signed by the heads of state and government of Great Britain, France, Germany, Finland, Norway, Ukraine, as well as the EU.
Zelensky is now betting on "Patriot"
The unexpectedly announced second meeting between Putin and Trump seems to have put an end to the hopes of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to receive Trump's consent to the supply of long-range "Tomahawk" cruise missiles.
After Trump's refusal to provide "Tomahawk" to Kiev, now - according to Zelensky - Ukraine is focusing on the possibility of receiving "Patriot" air defense systems from the United States. "We are cooperating with America so that Ukraine can receive the necessary number of "Patriot" systems," he said in Kiev. "This is not an easy task, but it is one of the guarantees of Ukraine's security and will work in the long term," ARD quoted him as saying.
The second Trump-Putin meeting may not take place?
It remains unknown to this day when exactly the second meeting between Trump and Putin will take place. There are even doubts that such a meeting will take place at all. For example, according to CNN, a conversation between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov is not scheduled for now. The reason for the postponement is not clear.
The television has learned from an informed source that there are differences on the path to ending the war in Ukraine. But Rubio and Lavrov could meet again this week after their conversation last Monday.
ARD also cited the Russian agency Interfax, according to which the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Moscow stated that "it is not correct" to talk about a postponed meeting between Rubio and Lavrov, since there was no specific agreement for such a meeting. “You can't postpone something that hasn't been agreed upon”, said Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov. There was no confirmation of such an agreement, nor was there any talk of the time and place of such a meeting.
The disputes that Budapest causes
While the timing of the meeting between the two presidents remains unclear, criticism is growing in many EU and NATO countries over the planned venue for the meeting - Budapest. The Hungarian capital is not seen as a neutral meeting place due to the closeness of right-wing populist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to Putin, ARD reports.
German CDU politician Roderich Kiesewetter recently called for consequences for Hungary if it does not hand over Putin to the International Criminal Court, which has issued a warrant for his arrest, upon his arrival. “If Hungary does not detain the war criminal Putin, which it is obliged to do by the spring of 2026, this would be a maximum violation of the EU's security interests, its values and the rules-based order,” Kiesewetter told “Handelsblatt”. This should lead to massive sanctions against Hungary and the suspension of Hungary from the EU.
Free Democrat MEP Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann wants Hungary to be stripped of its EU voting rights in this case. "The EU should under no circumstances simply accept Putin's planned visit," she said.
However, the Alternative for Germany party welcomes the choice of venue, the ARD reports. The party's co-chairwoman Alice Weidel believes that "there is no better place in the world than Budapest when it comes to achieving peace in Europe and overcoming the huge division on our continent."
On Monday in Kiev, Zelensky said that he did not consider Budapest to be a suitable place for the meeting - he had told Trump and his special envoy Steve Witkoff as well. "I don't believe that a prime minister who blocks Hungary everywhere can do anything good for Ukrainians or make a balanced contribution," Zelensky said.