Trump still believes in Ukraine's weakness and Russia's strength, analyst says
Photo: US President Donald Trump (Getty Images)
US President Donald Trump still believes in Ukraine's weakness and Russia's strength, and he is unlikely to change his mind, says Mykhailo Samus, an analyst and director of the New Geopolitics Research Network. The prospects offered to him in Russia are too tempting.
“I think he will not change his view that Ukraine is weak, Russia is strong, and you can make more money with Russia than with Ukraine. These are the main parameters by which Trump actually acts,” the analyst said.
According to Samus, Trump's main advisor in this matter is his special envoy Steve Witkoff, who has repeatedly visited Moscow and spoken with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
“Witkoff tells him that Putin promises very lucrative contracts with Russians in the extraction of gold, diamonds, gas, and rare earth metals. Anything, just break Ukraine and you will get it all. That's why dollars are spinning in the eyes of Witkoff and Trump,” the expert added.
Influence on Trump and the threat of collapse
Meanwhile, Samus says that there are people in Trump's team who have a different attitude toward Russia, such as Secretary of State Marco Rubio. However, he obviously cannot influence the president as much as Witkoff, because it is “a different level of relationship and influence.”
“I'm sure there are different factions in the Trump administration. Some people understand what is happening, that the Trumpists will collapse, the Republican Party will collapse in the 2026 by-elections. This could be a catastrophic collapse in terms of influence in the Senate and the House of Representatives,” Samus said.
Strong position of Trump's aides
According to the analyst, even this threat does not seem to change Trump's mind and abandon the advice of aides such as Witkoff.
“Trump may indeed be influenced by advisers like Witkoff or continue his tariff policy with advisers like Navarro, for example, who are not scientists at all and know little about international politics or real economics. But Trump is influenced by such people. And the administration is following the guidance of such "experts,” Samus says.
At the moment, the analyst does not see such a strong faction in Trump's team that could convince him to immediately change his policy on tariffs or on Ukraine.
Witkoff's influence on Trump
US special envoy Steve Witkoff visited Russia recently, where he met with Russian envoy for investment Kirill Dmitriev. Afterward, he held almost five-hour talks with Putin.
Witkoff called the talks with the Kremlin leader “convincing” and said they discussed “steps that could end the war in Ukraine.”
According to Reuters, Witkoff later told Trump that the fastest step to peace in Ukraine is to give Russia four eastern Ukrainian regions.
The Wall Street Journal wrote that several advisers to US President Donald Trump urged him to be more careful with Moscow's statements about the truce. However, Trump still stands by envoy Steve Witkoff, who believes Putin wants to make peace after meeting with him twice in Moscow.
Meanwhile, Witkoff is going to visit Moscow again at the end of this week to continue his talks with Russian president Vladimir Putin.
