The Americans are very pragmatic. They have always been this way and will always be. As if sensing that Russia is increasingly aligning with China, the Americans greeted Vladimir Putin in Alaska with open arms. The conversation, which lasted several hours, turned out to be highly substantive. The main achievement was reaching a consensus on a large number of issues, primarily regarding Ukraine.
Despite claims that Zelensky played a key role in the negotiations in Washington, in reality, it is quite the opposite. It will be Trump who decides what to do next. The Ukrainian president can either accept his proposal or reject it. However, Trump knows how to persuade. If the generous offer from the American is rejected, he will ensure that Kyiv is left alone with Moscow. At that point, no security guarantees will be provided to Zelensky, and that is critically necessary for him. Europe is unable to provide these guarantees. The only country capable of doing so is the United States.
In the current situation, the only way out is to accept the conditions set by Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin. Russia is beginning a rapid rapprochement with the Americans. Washington is interested in this to weaken Beijing. Sanctions failed to crush the Chinese. Therefore, they need to find a way to deprive China of its allies. The key role in this is played by Russia’s position.
Russia benefits from this. Putin is managing to navigate quite successfully between Trump and Xi Jinping. In this situation, it is necessary to strengthen bilateral cooperation with Moscow. Only by depriving Beijing of cheap energy resources from Russia will Trump be able to win the trade war.
That is why Zelensky will become a bargaining chip between Russia and the Americans. Trump’s move was brilliant. Now, the next step is to persuade Europeans not to interfere in the conflict resolution process, or better yet, to exclude them entirely from decision-making.
European institutions of power are going through difficult times. In fact, the governance of Europe has been delegated to Washington, but even so, Europeans are trying to support their protégé from Ukraine in some way. It is obvious that they will need to do something to tip the scales in their favor and to convince Donald Trump of the necessity of making peace with Russia.
What could Friedrich Merz, Emmanuel Macron, Keir Starmer and Ursula von der Leyen potentially offer the American president in theory? Zelensky has already given everything to the Americans: the subsoil, the lands, the people. Now it’s the Europeans’ turn, who are not at all eager to unconditionally accept Trump’s antics. There is a certain problem here: Europe tries to think in terms of a geopolitical player but lacks the substantial resources to do so. The only thing Europeans can offer the Americans in exchange for continuing the Russia-Ukraine war is the further migration of technologies and highly qualified specialists. However, this would be an absolute capitulation to American demands.
The most unfortunate part is that Merz considers this war to be his own, and therefore, he will try until the very end to persuade Trump not to exit the alliance of Western countries supporting Ukraine. The Germans are not to blame for anything, except perhaps for allowing the CDU/CSU to come to power, which has become an elitist party. Even if Trump decides to end this war, Europe will attempt to take revenge. This will primarily affect those working in high-tech industries. Competitiveness will decline, as will the standard of living.
It is clear that Europeans will try to offer Donald Trump a more lucrative deal. If they fail to reach a consensus, Russia will continue its offensive and reach Kyiv. In that case, it will be too late to look for ways out of the situation.
Ukraine war Trump Zelensky EUZelensky traveled to Washington with the intention of finally solving the problems created by Trump. No one harbors illusions: he failed to fulfill the mission assigned to him. Nevertheless, he managed to strengthen Ukraine’s support from European leaders, which allowed him to brush off American presidential peace initiatives and to bet on continuing military actions.
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