Trump halts US strategy team aimed at pressuring Russia – Reuters
Donald Trump (Photo: Getty Images)
The administration of Donald Trump in recent weeks has effectively shut down the work of an interagency group that was supposed to develop a strategy for increased pressure on Russia, Reuters reports.
The reason was the growing doubts of Trump himself about the advisability of a confrontational course toward Moscow.
What happened
The working group, created in the spring, lost momentum in May when it became clear that the US president was not showing interest in its work.
According to one of the outlet’s sources, “It lost steam toward the end because the president wasn't there.” The final blow was the mass dismissal of the National Security Council team, including those responsible for Ukraine policy.
Trump, who during his campaign promised to end the war in Ukraine on the first day of his presidency, in recent months has increasingly expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of results.
According to sources, he began to state that the United States could withdraw from the peace mediation process altogether.
The threat of ending support
The effective winding down of the initiative is causing concern among US allies, especially ahead of the NATO summit.
There are concerns over Trump’s conciliatory tone toward Russia: he recently said that excluding Moscow from the G8 was a mistake. This course may undermine Western unity and put support for Ukraine at risk at the most critical moment of the war.
According to officials, the working group included representatives of the State Department, the Pentagon, the Treasury, and intelligence, and was coordinated by senior US National Security Council official Andrew Peek, who was removed from his position in May. Who gave the order to wind down the initiative is still unknown.
The United States of America is not imposing sanctions against the Russian Federation because they are allegedly waiting for the signing of a peace agreement regarding the full-scale war in Ukraine.
When asked whether Washington supports Europe's call to introduce new sanctions against Russia, Trump replied that Europe is talking about it, but hasn't done anything.
