Trump Needs to Get Serious on Russia

It's time to stop dallying and put the pressure on Putin.

To be a fly on the wall during this conversation.

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It may seem like just yesterday, but over two months have passed since Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy came to blows at the Oval Office. The explosive spat between what should have been stalwart allies was an embarrassing moment for the world to see and underscored the Trump administration’s frustrations with how to address the war in Ukraine. Well, most in Washington can probably agree at least that Vice President JD Vance should probably be kept as far away from Zelenskyy as possible.

This complete breakdown in communication was contrasted earlier late last month by a notably Vance-less meeting at Pope Francis’ funeral. While the 15-minute encounter was not pre-planned in advance, both men were photographed in deep conversation amid their solemn surroundings. As the next few weeks have shown, it seems that this got the ball rolling. Later reports suggested that Zelenskyy apparently was able to get Trump to admit that he may have to change his approach to Putin. Washington and Kyiv ultimately framed the talks as positive, which was likely a major factor in the long-awaited minerals deal finally being signed.

The minerals deal signed between U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Ukrainian First Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svrydenko on April 30.

Vladimir Putin at the same time announced that there would be a unilateral three-day ceasefire beginning on May 8 to mark the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory in World War II. Moscow’s supposed humanitarian generosity was unsurprisingly a sham. After all, the previous 30-hour “Easter truce” in April fizzled out as quickly as it started. Russia continued its launch of missiles on Ukrainian territory within the first six hours of that truce, according to Zelenskyy and even Trump himself issued a warning to Putin, curtly telling him to stop.

The next so-called ceasefire was just as meaningless. If Moscow was truly serious about ceasing hostilities, it would not have arbitrarily waited until May 8. Just days after Putin’s announcement, a Russian drone attack on May 1 killed one person and wounded 28 others in Zaporizhzhia. Fast forward to last week and Kyiv once again accused Moscow of violating the latest ceasefire. Make no mistake — the only reason Russia is even suggesting “ceasefires” is to make themselves look the party interested in peace and Ukraine the side that insists on continuing the bloodshed.

Another reason for Russia’s “ceasefire” was to hold its Victory Day celebration parade in Moscow. Rumors were abound that Ukraine would wage some kind of attack, but the presence of foreign leaders like Xi Jinping appears to have stopped any such plans.

It is evident that Trump isn’t taking the bait — he most recently accused Putin of “tapping him along” and suggested that new actions such as sanctions may be in order. He re-affirmed this last week after a call with Zelenskyy, threatening more sanctions on Moscow if a full ceasefire was not implemented. The U.S. president has privately expressed his frustrations toward Russia “wanting the whole thing,” and even Vance is saying that Putin is “asking for too much.” Trump now finds himself at a crossroads of what to do with a conflict he previously boasted that he could end “in 24 hours.”