Russia tries Ukraine land grab before Trump summit
The incursion may be part of Putin's efforts to boost his bargaining position
What happened
Russian forces broke through Ukrainian defenses and advanced several miles near the eastern stronghold of Pokrovsk Tuesday, an unexpected incursion widely seen as part of President Vladimir Putin's efforts to boost his bargaining position ahead of his summit with President Donald Trump in Alaska on Friday. The White House Tuesday sought to temper expectations for the summit, calling it a "listening exercise for the president."
Who said what
Trump "is agreeing to this meeting" at Putin's request, with a goal to "walk away with a better understanding of how we can end this war," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said. When Trump announced the summit last week, the BBC said, he "sounded positive that the meeting could result in concrete steps toward peace." His "initially higher expectations" appeared to be "based in part on a misunderstanding from a meeting between his envoy, Steve Witkoff, and Putin in Moscow last week on the terms Russia might accept," The Washington Post said.
The lowering of expectations is "good news," a senior European diplomat told the Post. Ukraine and its European allies "fear that Trump, keen to claim credit for making peace and seal new business deals" with Russia, might end up rewarding Putin for "11 years of efforts to seize Ukrainian territory," Reuters said. Trump said in recent days that a peace deal would involve "some land swapping."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told reporters Tuesday it was "clear to us" that Putin's goal with the new offensive was to convince Trump that "Russia is moving forward, advancing, while Ukraine is losing." He reiterated that giving up Ukrainian territory was not on the table.
What next?
Zelenskyy was scheduled to participate in a video conference today with Trump and the leaders of Germany, France, Britain, Finland, Italy, Poland and NATO. All sides, the BBC said, "will try to convince Trump of the need not to be swayed by Putin when the two meet at the hastily organized summit" at a U.S. military base in Anchorage.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Buddhist monks’ US walk for peaceUnder the Radar Crowds have turned out on the roads from California to Washington and ‘millions are finding hope in their journey’
-
American universities are losing ground to their foreign counterpartsThe Explainer While Harvard is still near the top, other colleges have slipped
-
How to navigate dating apps to find ‘the one’The Week Recommends Put an end to endless swiping and make real romantic connections
-
US, Russia restart military dialogue as treaty endsSpeed Read New START was the last remaining nuclear arms treaty between the countries
-
What happens now that the US-Russia nuclear treaty is expiring?TODAY’S BIG QUESTION Weapons experts worry that the end of the New START treaty marks the beginning of a 21st-century atomic arms race
-
Which way will Trump go on Iran?Today’s Big Question Diplomatic talks set to be held in Turkey on Friday, but failure to reach an agreement could have ‘terrible’ global ramifications
-
EU and India clinch trade pact amid US tariff warSpeed Read The agreement will slash tariffs on most goods over the next decade
-
Ukraine, US and Russia: do rare trilateral talks mean peace is possible?Rush to meet signals potential agreement but scepticism of Russian motives remain
-
Trump backs off Greenland threats, declares ‘deal’Speed Read Trump and NATO have ‘formed the framework for a future deal,’ the president claimed
-
How oil tankers have been weaponisedThe Explainer The seizure of a Russian tanker in the Atlantic last week has drawn attention to the country’s clandestine shipping network
-
The rise of the spymaster: a ‘tectonic shift’ in Ukraine’s politicsIn the Spotlight President Zelenskyy’s new chief of staff, former head of military intelligence Kyrylo Budanov, is widely viewed as a potential successor
