"Eighty Percent Of Americans Consider Putin A Scoundrel."
- 26.10.2026, 11:41
- 1,246
Photo: svoboda.org
The former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine believes that Trump is afraid to put pressure on the Kremlin.
On October 21 in St. Petersburg, Vladimir Putin hosted Steve Whitcroft. Trump’s special envoy spent nearly three hours with him, having arrived in Russia after talks in Oslo, where he met with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders. The outcome of the meeting fell short of the high expectations. Putin agreed to resume trilateral talks in early November. Abu Dhabi is a possible venue for the meeting. In other words, the parties agreed to negotiate again.
Is the Kremlin ready to abandon its territorial claims? Will Trump be able to force concessions? John Herbst , former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine and Uzbekistan and director of the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center , says Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that behind the talk of investments in Ukraine after a peace agreement lies precisely those security guarantees:
– We know that the Trump administration has long maintained that, in their view, peace in Ukraine cannot be achieved by joining NATO. So this is nothing new. But we also know that starting last August, the U.S. and European countries began discussing security guarantees for Ukraine. So, while the talk is about investments and economic ties, it’s also about security guarantees.
– Putin talks about peace and has agreed to resume trilateral talks, but Russian attacks on Ukraine continue. Do you think this pressure could break Ukrainian resistance?
– If the West continues to help Ukraine and continues to provide the assistance Ukraine needs, Putin will not be able to break Ukraine, because the Ukrainian people understand that Putin wants to take control of their lives, and they cannot live on their own territory as Ukrainians if Russia maintains control over the country.
– Mr. Ambassador, in your view, is this currently a deadlock, the war continues, yet on the other hand, Americans and Russians—politicians and Trump’s envoys—are meeting. What solution do you see in general, or do you believe that nothing is happening and there is no positive news?
– I certainly don’t see any good news. In my view, Trump’s approach to this war has two main aspects. There is a positive factor and a negative factor. The positive factor is what Donald Trump has repeatedly said: he wants to achieve a lasting peace, a stable peace, and at the end of this process, Ukraine will be independent and free from threat. That is his goal, as he has often stated. But then there’s another element, or factor. It’s that Trump doesn’t like confrontations with Putin. Why, I don’t know, but it’s simply obvious. And to achieve peace, he needs to put pressure on the aggressor—I mean, he has to put pressure on Russia. And he doesn’t like doing that. It’s easier for him to put pressure on Ukraine; Zelenskyy said “yes” to six or seven of Trump’s peace proposals, and Putin rejected them all. After all, Trump doesn’t want to put pressure on Putin. And that’s why these two factors explain why one day Trump is ready to impose sanctions on Russia, and the next day he’s yelling at Zelenskyy as if Zelenskyy doesn’t want peace. And in fact, Zelenskyy is ready for peace; Putin is not.
– You’re absolutely right—Trump is constantly changing his position. How should Europeans—and Zelenskyy himself—respond to this? Where is the truth, and where is the lie? How do you talk to someone who is so unpredictable?
– We see an approach that’s working right now. Of course, Zelenskyy isn’t ready to give Trump what he wants when what Trump wants complicates Ukraine’s efforts to defend itself. That’s why he isn’t ready to hand over the western Donbas to the Kremlin. That would be a huge strategic mistake. But that’s one side of the story. On the other hand, Zelenskyy wants Trump’s approval, but not at the expense of Ukraine’s security. And in general, the Europeans are doing the same thing. Rutte talks to Trump as if he were an uncle. And everyone in Europe is ashamed of this. But in reality, this isn’t a bad approach, since Trump considers Rutte a friend, and Rutte can therefore approach Trump with requests and proposals, which gives him influence.
– After the meeting, Whitcoff thanked Putin for the release of American prisoner Stephen Hubbard. How do American voters and politicians perceive such gestures?
– Well, of course, Americans love it when an American is freed from a tyrant, as happened with Hubbard. But Trump wanted to convince the American public—and Republicans in Congress as well—that this is exactly why he has the right to do what he’s doing with Ukraine right now. But such attempts on Trump’s part were unsuccessful, because 80% of Americans consider Putin a scoundrel. Americans don’t like it when a scoundrel is appeased. Americans understand—and Republicans in Congress understand—that Trump is currently putting unfair and unwise pressure on Zelenskyy. But I must also add one more fact here. Trump speaks as if Putin simply handed Hubbard over to him. But he—Trump—doesn’t mention that his team pressured Montenegro to release Zvinchuk, the military correspondent for *Rybary*. Even the U.S. considers Zvinchuk a criminal. But because of pressure from Trump, Rybar returned to Russia. That’s why the U.S. got Hubbard.
– Many experts say that after the election—though we don’t yet know how it will end—Trump may radically change his position. Or will he continue to put pressure on Kyiv rather than on Moscow?
– Either one or the other is possible. But it would probably be difficult for Trump to continue this policy after our elections, because Congress will be returning to Washington to work. And many members of Congress, including Republicans, are saying that there needs to be an investigation into Trump’s policies on these issues. Trump must be concerned about that prospect.
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