Interview
The US is trying to win Russia over, but it won't work. Political Scientist
US President Donald Trump has stated that Vladimir Putin has disappointed him in his efforts to bring peace to Ukraine. "War is a completely different thing," the US president said.
Radar Armenia spoke to political scientist Norayr Dunamalyan on the subject.
- How do you assess Trump's words? Are they just rhetorical or a real sign that Washington no longer has expectations from Moscow?
- Trump's strategy from this perspective has always been distinguished by the fact that he is trying to influence Russia through soft and strict policies, for example, both negotiations and sanctions. This confession is a continuation of this policy, in the sense that in the future, they will try to gauge the Russian side's reaction and how it will be expressed within the framework of a specific situation. It should also be understood that with such a statement, the US is perhaps trying to escape responsibility in the sense of what processes will take place in the future, both in Europe and within the framework of the Ukrainian conflict. It cannot be said that this was simply an act of sincerity on Trump's part.
- What impact could this have on US-Russian relations?
- It also depends on the fact that the US consistently links its actions to the actions of other actors, for example, its recent statement that it will be able to impose sanctions against Russia only if other NATO members also take this step. This shows that it is more of a tactical phenomenon that contributes to the blurring of responsibility; that is, it is not me who is taking responsibility, but everyone. And, accordingly, it is a signal to Russia that the US is not trying to go into confrontation, but is trying to get out of the situation that it tried to get into after the elections, when Trump announced that he would resolve the issues within 24 hours, but that did not happen. Several months have already passed, and the conflict remains unchanged. And the deterioration of relations with Russia may change in a more global context, because after the meeting in Alaska, as well as in China, in the context of the military parade, representatives of many countries came, the US is trying to take Russia to its side, opening a common front against China. Still, this cannot happen. This irritates Trump, and he is trying to influence Russian policy with such actions, but I do not think that this will end the deepening of the conflict.
- Trump stressed that the war is "completely different from what was expected." In your opinion, does this indicate that the US and its allies have misjudged Russia's steps and the course of the war?
-Initially, by making such a statement, Trump is blaming not himself. Still, the previous administration, led by Biden, both the US and some European countries were making miscalculations in terms of supporting that conflict in Ukraine until 2025, and today the US is making attempts to put an end to that conflict. Still, I will repeat the same idea, that the US is trying to retreat, because the attempts that were there from the beginning, as a peacemaker, were not implemented in the end. According to this, Trump justifies his future actions, and Europe's steps should be viewed from the perspective of the European Union. In the absence of US support, European countries will likely take softer steps in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. In the future, we can expect the Ukrainian side to agree to direct negotiations with the Russian side. But it depends on how ready the Russian side is to engage in direct talks.
Lilit Abrahamyan
