NYT: As Trump and Putin Circle Each Other, an Agenda Beyond Ukraine Emerges
They have been circling each other carefully for seven days now — sending out invitations to talk, mixing a few jabs with ego-stroking, suggesting that the only way to end the Ukraine war is for the two of them to meet, presumably without the Ukrainians.
President Trump and Vladimir V. Putin, whose relationship was always the subject of mystery and psychodrama in the first Trump term, are at it again. But it is not a simple re-run. Mr. Trump was unusually harsh in his rhetoric last week, saying Mr. Putin was “destroying Russia”, and threatening sanctions and tariffs on the country if it doesn’t come to the negotiating table — a fairly empty threat given the tiny amount of trade between the U.S. and Russia these days.
Calculating and understated as ever, Mr. Putin has responded with flattery, agreeing with Mr. Trump that Russia would not have invaded Ukraine had he been president three years ago. He repeated that he was ready to sit down and negotiate over the fate of Europe, superpower to superpower, leader to leader.
Last Updated: 26.Jan.2025 23:59 EST
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