Donald Trump Ukraine Peace Plan Stonewalled by Putin
Kira Rudik said President Trump must use sanctions, give more arms to Ukraine and threaten the confiscation of Russian assets to pressure Putin after the Kremlin said he would not attend talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
John Hardie from the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (FDD) told Newsweek that Trump has dangled carrots in front of Putin, "now it's time to add some sticks."
Trump said there will be no progress until he speaks directly with Putin after the Russian leader again thumbed his nose at the U.S. administration's plans for ending the war.
Trump's comments mark the latest chapter in his efforts to bring together both sides, but they have resulted in Putin snubbing Washington's proposal, backed by Kyiv, for a 30-day ceasefire as a pathway to permanent peace.
Without saying he would attend personally, Putin issued a surprise call last week for talks with Ukraine in Turkey to restart 2022 negotiations to end the war.
After a push by Trump, Zelensky responded by saying he would be in Turkey to await Putin, throwing down the gauntlet for the Russian leader, whose absence would show that he was the obstacle to the deal the U.S. president wants badly.
But with Putin's no-show, Zelensky also said he would not attend, further putting the prospect of an imminent deal between Ukraine and Russia into doubt.
On Thursday, Trump downplayed Putin's absence from Istanbul, saying, "Why would he go if I'm not going?" He had previously suggested that he might join the talks on Friday if progress is made.
Rudik, leader of the Holos party, told Newsweek that Putin's refusal has shown that Trump needs to use other methods to get the Russian leader to the table. These include confiscating Russian assets and backing sanctions European leaders have already agreed to following a meeting in Kyiv last weekend.
The sanctions targeted banking, finance and Moscow's sanctions-busting "shadow fleet" of ships transporting fossil fuels.
Hardie, deputy director of the Russia program at FDD, said Putin must face the consequences of dragging out peace talks.
Assuming Russia again rejects a ceasefire in Istanbul, the U.S. should join its European allies in imposing tougher sanctions, particularly targeting Russian oil revenue, Hardie told Newsweek.
The Trump administration also needed to convince the Kremlin that it would remain unable to gain significant additional territory or negotiating leverage via military means. Dwindling U.S. military aid will be felt in the coming months, likely bolstering Russia's position and making Putin even less willing to compromise.
"President Trump would be wise to ask Congress now for a 'Ukraine Leverage Package' that ensures U.S. assistance can continue," Hardie said.
The four months since Trump reentered the White House have included spats, promises and threats, but seemingly little progress in achieving a ceasefire or long-term peace plan.
Trump's phone call with Putin on February 12 was followed six days later by talks in Saudi Arabia involving Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, to which Ukraine was not invited.
Hopes that Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Zelensky could strike a minerals deal were dashed on February 28 following a White House argument.
Then, in March, U.S.-led shuttle diplomacy saw U.S. and Ukrainian officials meet in Saudi Arabia. American officials put forward a plan for a 30-day ceasefire, which Kyiv agreed to, but Putin effectively rejected it as he added additional stipulations.
Putin also met in Moscow with Trump's envoy, Steve Witkoff, who held talks with him two more times in April.
On March 18, a proposal for a temporary halt on strikes on energy infrastructure was put forward, which both sides agreed to but soon accused each other of violations.
Kyiv did not take Putin's unilaterally declared ceasefires over the Easter holiday (30 hours) and the May 9 Victory Day parade (three days) seriously.
Last week, European leaders meeting in Kyiv threatened Russia with sanctions if it did not follow a 30-day ceasefire starting May 12. Putin proposed restarting direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on May 15, but rejected the 30-day ceasefire and later Zelensky's challenge to meet personally.
U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday: "Nothing's going to happen until Putin and I get together."
Ukrainian opposition MP Kira Rudik told Newsweek: "Trump's attempts to try to just talk Putin into getting to the negotiating table have been exhausted. Ukraine is at this table, so President Trump needs to use his resources into delivering what he has promised."
John Hardie, deputy director of the Russia program at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, told Newsweek: "Moscow needs to face consequences for dragging out the peace talks. President Trump has tried dangling carrots in front of Putin. Now it's time to add some sticks."
At a press conference in Ankara on Thursday, Zelensky said that the meeting with Putin could be skipped if the two countries agree on a ceasefire during technical talks in Istanbul.
He added that if Moscow was unwilling to engage in the ceasefire talks, other countries should sanction Russia, but there is doubt over whether Putin would agree to this.
Vuk Vuksanovic, an Associate at the London School of Economics think tank LSE IDEAS, told Newsweek that Moscow will not halt its advance until it secures what it perceives as the bare minimum—seizing all the territories it claimed to have annexed in autumn 2022.
It will then seek to use this momentum to push for international recognition of these areas as part of Russia, and to pressure Ukraine into formally renouncing its aspirations to join NATO.
"Until these objectives are met, Russia have little reasons to cut a deal," he said.
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