Russian forces seen donning U.S. flags as experts say 'Trump has rewarded Putin'

Daily Mirror

14 hours ago

Geopolitical analysts say "Alaska [meeting] has emboldened Putin" as images show Russian vehicles wave the U.S. flag
Footage from the frontline in southeastern Ukraine appears to show attacking Russian military vehicles donning the United States' flag, days after Donald Trump's meeting with Vladimir Putin.
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The U.S. President wrapped up a week-long visit to Europe with a return to the States and a highly-anticipated meeting with his Russian counterpart, the first meeting between the pair since a 2018 summit.
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"Our relationship has never been worse than it is now. However, that changed as of about four hours ago. I really believe that," Trump told the media during a brief press conference after the meeting.
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Prior to the summit, Trump had issued a 50-day ultimatum to Putin, demanding he end his invasion of Ukraine or face severe tariffs against both Russia and its trade partners.
Since the turn of the year, Russia has ramped up missile and drone strikes on Ukraine, shifting military focus away from the stagnating frontlines and instead hitting targets, killing civilians, deep into Ukraine.
Trump's three-hour meeting with Putin appears not to have resulted in the coveted cease-fire deal the 78-year-old promised repeatedly to achieve within 24 hours of reassuming office.
Instead, Russia continues to wage war on Ukraine, now with footage appearing to show forces on the Zaporizhzhia front bearing the U.S. shortly after Putin met with Trump.
Experts at the Royal Institute of International Affairs think tank, also known as Chatham House, claim Putin has been "rewarded" by Trump following their meeting, emboldening his army to openly flaunt the U.S. flag.
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"The Alaska summit...failed to produce any tangible outcome to stop Russian aggression against Ukraine," observed Orysia Lutsevych, Deputy Director of the Russia & Eurasia Programme at Chatham House.
"Russia has received a reward for its invasion. Trump called Russia a 'great country' and said there is strong mutual understanding between the two parties. This represents a further fissure in the already shaky Transatlantic alliance, the rupture of which is a primary Russian aim. The Alaska Summit represents another step towards this goal.
"Alaska has emboldened Putin, who is likely to prolong, not end, the war."
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On Monday (August 18), Trump hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky alongside several European leaders from the UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Finland, as well as leaders from NATO and the EU Commission.
Initial signs from the meeting between the allied parties, which consisted of a meeting between Trump and Zelensky separately, to a wider discussion, appear to show Europe's Coalition of the Willing is prepared to pledge Article 5-like security guarantees to Ukraine.
This clause, similar to NATO's model, would see the European nations treat an attack on Ukraine as an attack against all.
'During the meeting we discussed Security Guarantees for Ukraine, which Guarantees would be provided by the various European Countries, with a coordination with the United States of America,' Trump posted to his Truth Social platform.
Trump has also cited "land swaps" between the warring nations, which has been criticised by Ukraine since it would, in effect, not be 'swapping' land, instead allowing Putin to keep Ukrainian territory currently under Russian military occupation.