Putin signals opening for Trump to make good on major campaign promise about Ukraine

President-elect Donald Trump repeatedly suggested on the campaign trail that if elected, he would resolve the war between Russia and Ukraine. Critics, including so-called fact-checkers, suggested that it couldn't be done or that doing so would require unthinkable concessions on Kyiv's part.

Notwithstanding the nay-saying from the so-called experts, it appears that Trump might be able to make good on this major campaign promise after all. Putin, whose economy is apparently "overheating," told reporters Thursday that he was "ready to meet [Trump] if he wants it" and that he was open to making compromises at the negotiating table.

After meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Trump told reporters in September, "I think I haven't changed from the standpoint that we both want to see it end and a fair deal made. It's gonna be fair. I think it will happen at the right time. I think it is going to happen."

"This is a war that should have never happened. It should have never happened, and it wouldn't have happened. It's a shame," said Trump. "We'll get it solved. It's a very complicated puzzle, very complicated puzzle, but we'll get it solved, and people [will] get on with their lives. Too many people dead."

Reuters indicated in late November — around the time President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine's use of American-made long-range missile systems against targets in Russia — that Putin was keen to discuss a ceasefire in Ukraine with Trump, especially since he would be negotiating from a place of strength, having made significant advances in Ukraine at a pace unparalleled since the early days of his invasion.

'Too many lives are being so needlessly wasted.'

Five current and former Russian officials with "knowledge of Kremlin thinking" specifically told Reuters that Putin was open to freezing the conflict along the front lines. Three insiders speaking on the condition of anonymity suggested there was room for negotiation over what to do with the eastern regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson, where occupying Russian forces are largely in control, and that Moscow would consider withdrawing from territorial footholds in the Kharkiv and Mykolaiv regions.

Following the toppling of President Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syria by a U.S.-designated terrorist organization and Turkish-backed Islamic militants, Trump noted in a Dec. 8 Truth Social post,

Assad is gone. He has fled his country. His protector, Russia, Russia, Russia, led by Vladimir Putin, was not interested in protecting him any longer. There was no reason for Russia to be there in the first place. They lost all interest in Syria because of Ukraine, where close to 600,000 Russian soldiers lay wounded or dead, in a war that should never have started, and could go on forever. Russia and Iran are in a weakened state right now, one because of Ukraine and a bad economy, the other because of Israel and its fighting success. Likewise, Zelenskyy and Ukraine would like to make a deal and stop the madness. They have ridiculously lost 400,000 soldiers, and many more civilians. There should be an immediate ceasefire and negotiations should begin. Too many lives are being so needlessly wasted, too many families destroyed, and if it keeps going, it can turn into something much bigger, and far worse. I know Vladimir well. This is his time to act. China can help. The World is waiting!

"If a meeting takes place at some point with the newly elected president, Mr. Trump, I am sure we will have plenty to talk about," Putin said Thursday at his over four-hour long press briefing.

"Politics is the art of compromise. And we have always said that we are ready for both negotiations and compromises," said Putin. "It is just that the opposite side, in the literal and figurative sense of the word, refused to negotiate. And we are always ready for this. The result of these negotiations is always compromise."

Putin previously suggested in October that Russia was willing to make "reasonable compromises" but stressed "the outcome should be in favor of Russia."

"After all, we reached an agreement, essentially, in Istanbul at the end of 2022. And, I repeat for the 100th time, the Ukrainian side initialed this document, which means they generally agreed with it, and then for some reason they refused," Putin continued in his remarks Thursday. "It is clear why."

The New York Times reported in June that documents from the negotiating sessions held from February to April 2022 in Turkey show negotiators produced multiple drafts of a treaty that would have apparently seen Ukraine's security guaranteed while also satisfying a number of Putin's demands.

'Mr. Johnson, a man with a nice haircut, came and said that they need to fight to the last Ukrainian.'

Russia initially wanted Ukraine to recognize Crimea as part of Russia, but by April 15, both sides reportedly agreed to exclude Crimea from the treaty such that Ukraine would not formally cede the territory though Crimea would nevertheless remain under Russian occupation.

Negotiators also apparently agreed that Ukraine would declare itself permanently neutral, forgoing ever joining NATO but keeping open the possibility of membership in the European Union. They disagreed, however, over proposed limits on the firing range of Ukraine's missiles and on withdrawal of Ukrainian troops on their own territory. There was similarly pushback over Russia's demand for a removal of restrictions on the use of the Russian language in Ukraine.

While there appeared to be some agreement about numerous points in the drafts or at the very least the possibility for compromise, the Times indicated Russians effectively killed the talks with a toxic clause.

The Times indicated that in Istanbul, Ukrainian negotiators proposed a requirement that guarantor states, namely the U.S., Britain, France, China, and Russia, would have to defend Ukraine in the event of a subsequent armed attack. Moscow, however, allegedly pushed in a subsequent draft for all guarantor states to have a veto, meaning Russia could invade then block a military intervention on Ukraine's behalf.

A member of the Ukrainian negotiating team suggested that following this change, "We had no interest in continuing the talks."

Putin instead suggested in his remarks this week that former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was responsible for killing the talks.

"Mr. Johnson, a man with a nice haircut, came and said that they need to fight to the last Ukrainian. So they are fighting. Soon, these Ukrainians who want to fight will run out," said Putin. "In my opinion, soon there will be no one left who wants to fight. And we are ready [to negotiate] but the other side needs to be ready for both negotiations and compromises."

Zelenskyy appeared more interested in a different comment from Putin's press conference, namely the Russian president's suggestion that he was prepared to continue testing the Oreshnik hypersonic missile on Ukrainian targets, calling it an "interesting" experiment.

"People are dying, and he thinks it's 'interesting,'" wrote Zelenskyy. "Dumb***."

Zelenskyy also suggested that bringing Ukraine into NATO, "clear progress on Ukraine's EU membership," and more weapon deliveries would help make Russia recognize the need for peace.

Putin's remarks about compromises came a day after NATO chief Mark Rutte indicated that Ukraine's Western backers would continue furnishing Ukraine with weapons following a meeting with Zelenskyy in Brussels, reported Politico.

Rutte suggested that the objective is to ensure that Ukraine is in the "best possible position one day, when they decide so, to start the peace talks" with Moscow.

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