Political analyst on Ukraine-US-Russia talks in Riyadh: We are alone against two

"Right now, it looks like we are alone against two. So far, Ukraine has not gained any particularly positive achievements," the expert emphasized.

The political analyst noted that, in his opinion, US President Donald Trump has merely returned to Ukraine what former US leader Joe Biden had previously provided. He also stressed that, unfortunately, the US is not offering Ukraine any new support — neither political, financial, nor informational. According to him, all recent developments have mostly benefited the Russian Federation.

"We may be somewhat comforting ourselves with the hope that we can turn Trump toward us and away from Russia, but the likelihood of this happening remains extremely low. As for me — well, at least I’d like to think — that we understand the strategic prospects of this negotiation track and are also quite realistically skeptical about it. In reality, we are trying to buy time while we can still receive the aid that was allocated under Biden," Nesvytailov noted.

US support for Ukraine

The political analyst believes that Ukraine should not expect new support packages from the US. Instead, he suggests focusing on ensuring that European countries fill the aid gap that may emerge if the US withdraws. He also noted that the current dynamics of the negotiation process do not align with the timelines set by the Americans.

"What they (Trump and his entourage – ed.) are saying doesn’t really fit within any framework. Some people try to rationalize it, to give it depth, but I always say that in critical thinking, there is a principle called Occam’s razor, which advises against multiplying versions of reality. The most probable and obvious explanation is usually the true one," he explained.

The expert pointed out that, in his opinion, throughout his 78 years, Donald Trump has not demonstrated strategic decision-making or complex maneuvers in either business or politics. Given this, he expressed doubt that Trump could become a great strategist who thinks several steps ahead. He challenged others to provide examples of Trump's strategic consistency, as he himself had not been able to find any.

Russia may manipulate Trump

"For now, it looks like Russia is quite skillfully manipulating Trump. Many had hoped that even though Trump is not a strategist, he is principled — these ‘conceptual’ things are very important to him, and he has an inflated ego. If something hurts that ego, he might take offense at (Russian President Vladimir – ed.) Putin and start hitting back. The idea was that if Putin deceived him too much, Trump would eventually say, ‘Enough, this won’t continue,’" the political analyst explained.

According to him, after Trump’s negotiations with Putin, an immediate ceasefire regarding energy infrastructure was announced. The US leader stated that Putin had issued the corresponding order. However, soon after, massive attacks on Ukrainian cities resumed, causing casualties and destroying critical infrastructure.

At the same time, the US, according to the expert, took no action. In Ukraine, this was interpreted as a sign that no formal agreements had been signed, meaning the ceasefire had not yet taken effect. In response, Ukraine launched strikes on enemy positions.

"And now, reports are emerging that Trump is disappointed that the countries are not adhering to these agreements. In other words, there is a complete lack of alignment in positions. I don’t think this is some kind of strategy — because what would be the expected outcome of such a strategy? And now they are once again gathering to discuss this so-called ‘temporary truce,’ which supposedly ‘works,’ and Trump is disappointed that it doesn’t, so now a technical meeting is planned to make it work," he explained.

The political analyst concluded that the negotiation process looks very pessimistic, as no progress is being made. Meanwhile, Ukraine is the only party facing serious challenges in this situation.

Talks in Riyadh

It was reported today that Ukraine and the US will hold a new round of negotiations following the Americans’ meeting with Russia.

According to The New York Times, this time the talks in Riyadh will last for two days. Yesterday, discussions first took place between Ukraine and the US, while today, Washington is meeting with Moscow.

Earlier, we reported that the Office of the President of Ukraine had already revealed details of the Ukraine-US negotiations in Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, the Kremlin has also made its first statements regarding the new Russia-US talks in Riyadh.