Recent meetings involving the United States, Russia, European leaders, and Ukraine produced muddled outcomes rather than decisive agreements. Media attention concentrated on trivialities such as bomber overflights, wardrobe choices, and protocol formalities. Confused signals stemmed partly from an incompetent special envoy, Steve Witkoff, who failed to clarify Russian offers in preliminary talks. More fundamentally, divergent motivations shaped positions: Vladimir Putin seeks domination of Ukraine and eradication of its democratic independence; Ukrainian leaders prioritize preserving sovereignty and resisting territorial concessions. The differing aims and weak diplomatic preparation limited any substantive progress and increased the likelihood of continued stalemate and incremental aggression.
Whenever Donald Trump announces an international meeting about the Russia-Ukraine war, his critics immediately begin talking about Munich 1938 or Yalta 1945. The analogies are not only misplaced, but misleading. What happened in Anchorage last week and in the follow-on visit by European leaders to Washington on Monday was something far less tragic, and far less serious, than the comparisons would imply.
Too often, the commentary focused on trivialities. For the Trump-Putin summit: Was the B-2-bomber overflight when Vladimir Putin arrived in Alaska an undeserved honor or a sobering reminder of American power? How damaging was it when Trump whinged, once again, about "Russia, Russia, Russia" and repeated his delusions about having won the 2020 election? For the Washington meeting with European leaders and Vlodymyr Zelensky: Was the Ukrainian president's black suit a sign of submission, or a display of good sense?
The muddled outcomes (did the Russians accept the idea of Western security guarantees to Ukraine? Did the Ukrainians agree to cede territory to Russia?) began with the prelude to the meetings. The confused signals going in resulted in part from an incompetent special envoy, Steve Witkoff, being unable to get straight what the Russians had offered in preliminary talks-a rookie mistake if ever there was one, although par for the hapless real-estate lawyer turned diplomatic ingenue.
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