‘Trump did not lose, Putin clearly won': John Bolton after Alaska summit

Hindustan Times

2 days ago

Former US National Security Advisor John Bolton has said that Russian President Vladimir Putin "clearly won" and that US President Donald Trump "didn't lose" during the negotiations over the Ukraine war. US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin hold a press conference following their meeting to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska.(REUTERS)
The remark from the former top US official comes after the much-anticipated meeting between Trump and Putin in Alaska. Though the meeting ended without any agreements on ending the war in Ukraine, but both leaders called the talks productive.
Reacting to the Alaska summit, Bolton said that Putin achieved most of what he wanted, adding that the Russian President escaped sanctions without a ceasefire.
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"I think Trump did not lose, but Putin clearly won. Trump didn't come away with anything, except more meetings. Putin has, I think, gone a long way to reestablishing the relationship, which I always believed was his key goal," Bolton told CNN in an interview.
"He has escaped sanctions and he is not facing a ceasefire. The next meeting is not set. Zelensky was not told any of this before this press conference," he added.
The former NSA also criticised Trump's strategy, saying Trump achieved "very little" in the negotiations.
"It's far from over, but I would say Putin achieved most of what he wanted. Trump achieved very little," he said.
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Trump has said that he and Putin made some significant progress toward the goal of ending the conflict. However, he didn't give any details on what that entailed. Trump has also spoke to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and several European leader where he briefed them about the summit. Zelensky has said that would be travelling to the US on Monday.
In a post on his social media platform, Trump said, "A great and very successful day in Alaska! The meeting with President Vladimir Putin of Russia went very well, as did a late-night phone call with President Zelenskyy of Ukraine, and various European Leaders, including the highly respected Secretary General of NATO. It was determined by all that the best way to end the horrific war between Russia and Ukraine is to go directly to a Peace Agreement, which would end the war, and not a mere Ceasefire Agreement, which often does not hold up."
The US President added that Zelensky will be visiting Washington on Monday, following which the two leaders will schedule a meeting with Putin.