© EPA/AARON SCHWARTZ / POOL Peace efforts have reached a dead end.
President Donald Trump is increasingly pessimistic about the chances of a quick resolution to the war between Russia and Ukraine or a face-to-face meeting between the leaders of the two warring countries, according to two senior administration officials.
At the same time, Trump does not lose hope for a resolution to the war: on September 4, he participated in a telephone conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders, during which he emphasized that “Europe must stop buying Russian oil, which finances the war,” NBC News correspondents write.
But Trump’s more somber outlook on reaching a peace deal underscores how far he has come since the 2024 campaign, when he boldly predicted he would end the war within 24 hours of taking office. Trump later acknowledged that the war has proven to be a more protracted problem than he anticipated.
In addition, two people said that the difficulty may lie in Trump's relationship with Putin; he has told his advisers that he is determined not to destroy it. Even during his first term, Trump has argued that it is in America's interest to maintain relations with his Russian counterpart, who controls a nuclear arsenal.
“The potential advantage of maintaining relations with Putin is that Trump can position himself as a mediator who can be trusted by both sides. He has influence over both Putin and Zelensky,” the Western official said.
The official also said that while sanctions are a tool that can force Putin to make concessions, they also have a downside, as any escalation of the conflict jeopardizes Trump's role as a fair mediator. He added that the challenge is to choose the right time to impose sanctions and “back off” when progress is made.
As a reminder, Trump said that he plans to talk to Putin in the near future. The US President assures that he has a good dialogue with the Kremlin leader.
