Robert Rubinstein

Reality is finally crashing down on the Kremlin: Trump can't deliver the easy capitulation putin was banking on. In a telling moment of backdoor realisation, putin’s top aide, Yuri Ushakov, just exposed Moscow's deep desperation. He admits that dealing strictly with Trump and his real estate “diplomats”, isn't working because Trump can't just bully Kyiv into submission. Instead, Russia is finally forced to accept a hard truth: they have to deal with a united Europe that stands firmly behind Ukraine. Desperate for progress, Moscow now wants Europe at the table—proving once and for all that Trump's 'magic wand' has completely failed. Pavel Zarubin: “Is such an option possible, if Zelensky continues to behave insolently toward the American administration, that the American administration will simply dictate and force him to make the decisions that the American administration considers correct?” Yuri Ushakov: “Well, you understand, even earlier there was an impression after Anchorage, too, that the American administration could dictate something like that and force Kyiv to fulfill it. But so far this hasn't quite worked out, because it's not enough to talk only with Kyiv; one needs to talk with the whole of Europe, which fully supports Kyiv, and perhaps Europe's position here is of a key character.”