Putin believes in his victory: the meeting between Zelenskyi and Trump strengthened his confidence — Forbes
Forbes analyzed the results of the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi at the White House on October 18. According to the author of the article, the attempts of the States to put an end to the war have not stopped Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Russia, on the contrary, is intensifying air attacks on Ukrainian cities.
Citing a report published in The New York Times, the journalist explains that Putin is not only convinced of "the growing superiority of Russia on the battlefield," but also believes that Ukrainian defense "may collapse in the coming months. " The Russian leader has repeatedly said that he will not stop the invasion "without significant concessions from Ukraine", so the author of the article notes that his voluntary agreement to end the war is unlikely.
Thus, Putin is satisfied with the continuation of the Russian-Ukrainian war, because he believes that the Russian Federation is capable of winning it. In addition, the journalist notes that Trump's statements did not sound threatening to Putin. Over the past eight months, the American president has issued several ultimatums to the Kremlin, including threats to introduce new sanctions against the Russian energy sector, but these threats have not been implemented.
At the same time, Trump suspended the supply of weapons to Ukraine in March and July, and now the United States has refused to provide Kiev with new forms of defense assistance that would allow not only to defend itself, but also to strike military targets on the territory of the Russian Federation. According to the author of the material, the Russian president understands that the Ukrainians will not receive the necessary equipment to protect against further invasion.
He has no incentive to end the war or conduct any peace negotiations, so the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues. Presidents Zelenskyi and Trump met at the White House on October 17. The US president called the Russian Federation's war against Ukraine the "ninth conflict", which he intends to end. He emphasized that he hoped to achieve a ceasefire without the use of "Tomahawks" and expressed hope for Zelensky's participation in his negotiations with Putin in Budapest.
Following the negotiations, Volodymyr Zelenskyi said that the war must be "stopped where it is", and regarding the Tomahawk missiles, he and Donald Trump agreed not to speak publicly, as the US does not want escalation. The President of Ukraine also noted that he still hopes for the transfer of Tomahawks to Ukraine in exchange for Ukrainian-made drones.