Mike Pompeo, Trump's former CIA Director and Secretary of State during Trump's first term, has an opinion piece in this weekend's FT about the Ukrainian peace process that, while correct in it's thrust that Ukraine needs credible and robust security guarantees, opens unconsciously with just what is wrong with the American approach under Trump.
Pompeo writes in his opening,"The president [Trump] is marshaling American strength to build the coalition necessary to secure Ukraine's future--exactly the kind of leverage Putin fears." Pompeo's obsequious praise of Trump may be necessary to ingratiate Pompeo with Trump, but it is an absurd characterization of Trump's effectiveness in negotiating with Putin.
In the same edition of FT, Trump critic and historian, Timothy Snyder, writes in an article titled, The Myths that Made Putin's War, a more realistic appraisal of Trump's effectiveness. Timothy Snyder--writing in the context of Russia's mythical past that justifies, in Muscovy's (Moscow's) mind, its war on Ukraine--writes,
"Russia is now engaged in a war in eastern Europe. And, apropos of this war, it is dominating the court of its stronger rival, the US. The Trump administration surrenders position after position. No longer, under Trump, need Putin fear condemnation for his illegal invasion and Russia's extensive war crimes. Standard means of deterring future wars, such as trials, reparations and troop deployments, are conceded in advance, in exchange for nothing. US military aid to Ukraine has been stopped twice and, to all appearances, will be allowed simply to run out."
Pompeo writes that the Ukrainian people are "exhausted by years of bloodshed and destruction" and "peace will probably require difficult compromises." But that is for the Ukrainian people and their leaders to decide. Ukraine did not choose this moment or this circumstance. Indeed, they have no choice.
The US negotiating separately with Putin, and in bad faith, is not a substitute.
Fully agree, Dirk!
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