Putin plays smart with Trump on Ukraine: no concessions, just tactics

Phone call between the two leaders is part of Russian strategy to curb real negotiations and exploit Washington’s diplomatic approach

The recent phone call between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump confirms the tactical line adopted by the Kremlin in the context of the Russia-U.S. contacts that began in February: offering signs of readiness without making any real concessions. According to international analysts, the Russian president aims to delay any concrete negotiations on the conflict in Ukraine, while leaving space for Trump to claim an apparent diplomatic victory.

Analyst Ivan Preobrazhensky, interviewed by the Moscow Times, pointed out that the two-hour talks between the two leaders did not produce any real breakthrough. “There were no concrete talks on a cease-fire,” he says, ”Russia continues to reject any credible negotiations. Putin’s goal is to buy time, keep a channel open with Trump and postpone the moment when Ukraine can start serious negotiations.”

According to Tatyana Stanovaya, of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, the Russian president is trying to propose symbolic outcomes to Trump that can be passed off as successes without changing his strategic position at all. A truce, in fact, would eventually be granted only under strict conditions, including a freeze on Western military aid to Kiev and a halt to Ukrainian recruitment.

Meanwhile, Russia is aiming to bring Ukraine back to the table in Istanbul, hoping to close the diplomatic front before it actually opens. But this is not a real peace offer: it is a calculated delay with the horizon of upcoming international deadlines. In June, the United States will have to decide whether to continue military support for Kiev, and NATO will meet in The Hague to set its future strategy.

According to analyst Aleksandr Morozov, although the focus of the phone call with Trump was partly economic, the Kremlin is aware that the window for manipulating the relationship with Washington is short. “Putin knows this well: time is playing against him. But in the meantime he tries to exploit it all.”

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(Photo: © AndKronos)