In the past few months Trump’s advisors had claimed that the United States holds the upper hand in ending the war in Ukraine, that Putin could be bent into a cease fire and a favorable settlement. But according to our sources, this is not the case, General Kellogg, et. al. have given poor advice and have been forced to scramble to adjust to reality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Russian President Vladimir Putin has carefully positioned himself with strong strategic advantages. He controls key Ukrainian territory, holds onto Russia\u2019s only warm-water naval base in Crimea, and has proven that Russia can survive international sanctions far better than many expected. According to one expert, \u201cPutin has a huge advantage. All he has to do is sit there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From a geopolitical standpoint, Russia is in a far more stable position than many of its adversaries. While European countries struggle with rising energy costs and internal political divisions, Putin has kept a firm grip on power, managed dissent at home, and maintained support from allies like China and Iran. His economy, though weakened by sanctions, has not collapsed. Instead, it has adapted. Russia has found new trade routes and alternative partners while continuing to finance its military operations in Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meanwhile, President Trump is facing a ticking clock. During his campaign and early in his second term, Trump repeatedly said he could stop the war in Ukraine quickly. That promise now puts pressure on him to show results. \u201cTrump wants to have this as a win,\u201d said one source, noting that Trump believed peace could be achieved in a matter of weeks. However, that expectation may have been based on flawed advice. According to our sources, Trump was misled by his advisors \u2014 particularly General Keith Kellogg \u2014 who underestimated Putin\u2019s position and overestimated America\u2019s leverage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In recent weeks, Putin has made a number of bold public statements about what a peace deal should look like. These suggestions have drawn criticism from both the United States and Ukraine. On March 28, speaking in Murmansk, Russia, Putin proposed that Ukraine hold new elections and that the country be governed by a \u201ctransitional administration\u201d under the guidance of the United Nations. \u201cWe could, of course, discuss with the United States, even with European countries, and of course with our partners and friends, under the auspices of the U.N., the possibility of establishing a transitional administration in Ukraine,\u201d Putin said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This proposal was immediately rejected by the White House. A U.S. national security spokesperson responded by saying that Ukraine\u2019s government was \u201cdetermined by its constitution and citizens.\u201d The Ukrainian constitution does not allow elections during wartime, and many leaders in Kyiv and Washington saw Putin\u2019s plan as a way to force out President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and install a more pro-Russian government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Putin has also claimed that Zelenskyy\u2019s mandate is no longer legitimate because Ukraine did not hold presidential elections in 2024, a delay required under martial law. While Putin criticizes Zelenskyy\u2019s authority, his own rule has spanned 25 years, with elections widely considered illegitimate. Despite his claims, a poll by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology recently found that 69 percent of Ukrainians still trust Zelenskyy\u2019s leadership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By pushing such extreme demands, Putin is not only trying to reshape the conversation around Ukraine\u2019s future but also buying time. Each proposal allows him to stall peace negotiations while continuing military operations. It is a classic strategy of controlled delay \u2014 not dissimilar from a chess grandmaster playing a slow game to wear down a faster-moving opponent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In response to Putin\u2019s recent remarks, Trump made clear that he disapproved of the idea of removing Zelenskyy. In an interview with NBC News, Trump said, \u201cI was very angry, pissed off, when Putin said yesterday that \u2014 you know, when Putin started getting into Zelensky\u2019s credibility, because that\u2019s not going in the right location, you understand?\u201d He emphasized that pushing for new leadership in Ukraine would only drag out the process. \u201cBut new leadership means you\u2019re not gonna have a deal for a long time, right?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite his disagreement with Putin\u2019s proposals, Trump avoided fully escalating the conflict. He did, however, issue a strong warning: if Russia is seen as responsible for continued bloodshed, the U.S. could impose a 25 to 50 percent tariff on all Russian oil exports. \u201cIf I think it was Russia\u2019s fault \u2014 which it might not be \u2014 but if I think it was Russia\u2019s fault, I am going to put secondary tariffs on oil, on all oil coming out of Russia,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This approach signals that while Trump is serious about pushing for a ceasefire, he is also being careful. Unlike in past conflicts, he has not rushed to label Russia as the sole aggressor or threaten military action. Instead, he appears to be balancing diplomacy with economic pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Putin\u2019s strategy has caught even seasoned diplomats off guard. While the Trump administration continues to push for a 30-day ceasefire and negotiations, Russia has made repeated moves to undermine the process. Shortly after agreeing to pause strikes in the Black Sea and on energy infrastructure, Russia launched drone attacks on a Ukrainian hospital in Kharkiv, killing two civilians and wounding many others. These actions make it clear that any ceasefire agreement could be fragile at best.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite setbacks, Trump\u2019s team remains committed to talks. U.S. diplomats met with Russian and Ukrainian officials in Riyadh and reported some progress. But Russia quickly added new conditions. Moscow now says that any truce will only take effect if sanctions on Russian banks are lifted \u2014 a detail not included in the U.S. version of the agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even Trump has acknowledged that Putin may be using delay tactics. \u201cIt could be that they\u2019re dragging their feet,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ve done it over the years. You know, I don\u2019t want to sign a contract, I want to sort of stay in the game.\u201d The comment reflects a rare moment of candor, as Trump hints that Putin may be playing a similar game \u2014 keeping negotiations alive while continuing to pursue military and political gains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are few in the world who can match Trump’s ability to negotiate and wield power. Putin is one of them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was noted to me recently that a great many politicians fit the classic “narcissist” pattern, including every President in recent history. Putin almost certainly falls into this category. Some of these underestimations might be seen as disrespect, something you do not do to Putin. Part of his goal (and easily accomplished in this scenario) may be a certain amount of humiliation for Trump. And perhaps deservedly so, given the arrogance of his advisors in telling Trump he could push Putin. They all should have known better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump is not happy, heads should roll.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In the past few months Trump’s advisors had claimed that the United States holds the upper hand in ending the war in Ukraine, that Putin could be bent into a cease fire and a favorable settlement. But according to our sources, this is not the case, General Kellogg, et. al. have given poor advice and have been forced to scramble to adjust to reality. Russian President Vladimir Putin has carefully positioned himself with strong strategic advantages. He controls key Ukrainian […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":5945,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,11,22,23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5944","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-european-politics","category-gas-oil","category-trump","category-ukraine-russia-war"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/putinlongplayzsdfa.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5944","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5944"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5944\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5946,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5944\/revisions\/5946"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5945"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5944"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5944"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5944"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}