LOS ANGELES (OC).–President Donald Trump, 79, likened his Alaska summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin hyping the drama to a fever’s pitch with the press, on both sides of the Atlantic, in a frenzy not knowing what to expect. Trump’s European Union allies, led by French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, said they were happy with the the phone call they had with Trump in advance of the high stakes meeting. Trump risks his own credibility creating expectations about a possible outcome leading to a pause in the air war in Ukraine. While comparing it a “chess game” and saying there’s a 25% chance could fail, Trump hints at the outcome. Trump would not hold a high stakes meeting with Putin unless the groundwork was set by special envoy Steve Witkoff who did much of the advance work before the event.
When bandied about in the press, there’s no rhyme-or-reason to the hubbub other than the pure hype of fake news stories. Does anyone think Trump would have set the meeting up with Putin unless he had something big to announce? When you listen to the press, it ranges from Trump dictates terms of any territorial concessions to it’s a high stake gamble that will destroy Trump’s reputation if he doesn’t pull it out. Well, Trump’s no fool and wouldn’t have set up the meeting with Putin unless there were a reasonable chance of success. When Trump says there’s a 25% chance that the meeting with Putin won’t bear fruit, he means that there’s a 75% that it will succeed. Most people would take those odds but the press acts like the whole meeting is up-in-the-air when, in fact, Trump knows he has a deal in advance with Putin. Why the press hypes the upcoming meeting is obvious.
Today’s fake journalism is based on reporting from un-sourced, anonymous accounts, leaving the factual validity of any story reported weak. “It’s like a chess game,” Trump said. “This meeting sets up the second meeting, but there ris a 25% chance that this meeting will not be a successful meeting,” Trump said, tipping his hand that he’s got the decked already stacked in his favor. Only the sensational press presents the summit as a high stakes showdown between Trump and Putin. Neither leader would travel long distance with all the hoopla and fanfare unless they had something big to report. If Putin agrees to a pause in the air war in Ukraine, it puts enormous pressure on Ukraine’s 47-year-old President Volodymyr Zelensky to stop denouncing Putin and get down to peacemaking. Zelensky complains that Trump favors the Russian side of negotiations.
Zelensky has been furiously chirping in public since Trump announced he would meet Putin in Alaska for a summit. Zelensky is the last one Putin wants to deal with knowing his outspoken hostility toward the Russian leader. Zelensky demands that Putin face charges for war crimes, pay Ukraine war reparations and remove all troops from Ukrainian territory. With conditions like that, it’s no wonder that Putin wants no part of Zelensky. Zelensky pretends with all the attention from the EU that he has the same stature as Trump or Putin. So if Trump and Putin agree to pause the war, then Zelensky will be forced to put-up-or-shut-up. He’s been widely quoted saying since Trump announced his meeting with Putin that he would never cede territory to Putin. Putin knows he has a lot to gain by pausing the air war and letting the negotiations begin wherever they lead.
Trump knows the real brass tacks come when Putin agrees to a temporary ceasefire to see how Zelensky and his EU handlers deal with peace negotiatons. Zelensky has been talking tough about what Trump calls “swapping” territories. Zelensky wants Putin to return all territories seized during three-and-a-half years of war where thousands of Russian and Ukrainian troops have lost their lives. “The Second meeting is going to be very, very important because that’s going to be a meeting where they make a deal,” Trump sai. “And–I don’t want to use the word ‘divvy’ this up—but, you know, to a certain extent it’s not a bad term, OK? But there will be a give-and-take as to boundaries, land, etcetera, etcetera,” Trump said, irking Zelensky and the EU that want all of Ukraine’s territory back from Putin. Trump knows that if there’s no compromise, peace won’t happen.
Trump used his Hollywood theatrical skill to whip of the media now in full-on frenzy stage not knowing what to expect that the Anchorage summit. If there was little chance of success, Trump and Putin would have never scheduled the meeting. Both need the ceasefire for different reasons. Trump needs it to fulfill a top campaign promise to end the Ukraine War in short order. Since taking office, Trump has found ending the conflict more complicated than he once thought, largely because Zelensky doesn’t trust him to negotiate a good deal for Ukraine. Zelensky has been talking to the EU like Trump sold Ukraine down the river. But all indications point to Trump getting the best deal possible for Ukraine given the circumstances of Putin controlling the ground game in Ukraine. Only Trump and Putin know what’s going to be announced at tomorrow’s summit.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
