Mysterious negotiations or a political spectacle: the reaction of foreign media to Trump’s statement about a phone conversation with Putin
Donald Trump’s statement about his phone conversation with Putin regarding the end of Russia’s war against Ukraine caused a stir in the international media. In an interview with the New York Post, the US president did not specify when exactly the conversation took place, which only increased speculation about its true content and political motivation. The Kremlin, for its part, did not confirm, but did not deny the fact of the conversation, which added even more intrigue.
World analysts are divided in their assessments. Some see this as an opportunity for a diplomatic breakthrough that could hasten the end of the war. Others believe that Trump’s statements may be part of his campaign strategy aimed at strengthening his position among voters who support an isolationist approach to foreign policy. Against this background, the world press is analyzing whether it is correct to conduct such negotiations without Ukraine, whether there really was a telephone conversation between Trump and Putin.
NBC News – the American TV channel – writes about the statement of Trump’s representative Waltz, in which he said that Donald Trump intends to end the war in Ukraine, but the issue of security guarantees, in his view, should be decided by European countries.
According to him, Trump is actively discussing this issue with world leaders, including the leaders of China and India. He believes that in order to achieve peace, it is necessary to bring “both sides” to the negotiating table, and some states have already expressed their readiness to contribute to this process.
Waltz also said that an American delegation will soon go to Europe to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine. It will include US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Vice President JD Vance and Special Representative for Ukraine and Russia Keith Kellogg.
“Our Secretary of Defense, Vice President and Special Representative will be in Europe this week talking about the details of how to end this war.” – stressed Waltz.
At the same time, he avoided a direct answer to the question about a possible telephone conversation between Trump and Putin, explaining it by the fact that many “sensitive” negotiations are currently underway.
La Stampa – Italy. Milan’s La Stampa is outraged by the prospect of direct talks between Trump and Putin without the participation of Kyiv:
“This would be a step towards Putin’s desired “new Yalta” scenario, under which the presidents of the USA and Russia would share peace among themselves – as “between equals”.
… First of all, this would mean “talking about Ukraine without Ukraine itself” and thereby violating the condition that Kyiv set immediately after the beginning of the large-scale invasion of the Russian Federation three years ago and which has been followed by all Western partners so far. The idea that Putin and Trump could reach a “deal” without agreeing with those it would directly affect would mean that this condition would be ignored. It is impossible to force the Ukrainians to give up their sovereignty in favor of Moscow, just as it is impossible to force the Europeans in a military way to participate in the implementation of a decision that they did not agree on.”
News.bg – Bulgaria. Putin is only “creating fog,” the Bulgarian portal news.bg emphasizes:
“Trump did put Putin in an uncomfortable position. Putin has no intention of negotiating, but only wants to promote the recognition by Russia of the territories captured by Ukraine through military means. The topic of negotiations is only part of the Kremlin’s disinformation campaign. And now that Trump is actively talking about negotiations, Putin is actively looking for ways to avoid them. At the same time, the Kremlin continues to use the issue of negotiations as fake news, transferring to Ukraine the reason why they cannot take place.”
