UNITED States President Donald Trump thinks he can put Russian President Vladimir Putin in his pocket and end the Ukraine war after taking over the White House.
But Putin has quickly disabused his counterpart of such a fanciful notion. The Russian strongman is still on a warpath and there is nothing Trump can do about it. Peace is not on Putin’s radar.
In the first place, why should Moscow bend to the will of Washington? Russia is waging a ruthless war that no outsiders can stop, not even the United States.
Even Trump is angry and pissed off with the Kremlin leader and is mulling imposing sanctions on his country for not moving fast enough on negotiations to extinguish the Ukraine inferno.
If the so-called peace talks are not going to Trump’s liking, it is simply because Russia is holding all the trump cards. Hence, the behemoth can take all the time in the world to come up with the ultimate solution.
What’s Putin’s final solution? It will definitely not be an American-initiated peace plan but one based purely on Russian terms. His territorial ambition—the subjugation and probable annexation of Ukraine—is a huge engine that knows no rest.
How can puny Ukraine hold back the Russian juggernaut? With its armed forces standing at 1.5 million military personnel, Moscow has the firepower to hold off Nato and even the US if there is a showdown between the two superpowers.
Who then is Trump to dictate terms to a real dictator whose armed forces have slaughtered thousands of Ukrainians and have the ability to overrun Europe?
The modern “tzar” must be sneering at this American “cowboy” who is trying to play the role of peacekeeper when there is so much turmoil in his own backyard as he roils friends and foes alike at home and abroad with his divisive policies and actions.
If the Ukraine war must end, only Putin can silence the big guns. He doesn’t need mediators, especially archfoe America, to instruct him on how to turn swords into ploughshares.
Trump is not talking to a tinpot dictator but a ruler who commands a vast military machine and an awesome arsenal of nuclear weapons.
Putin, once described as a “pure thug”, doesn’t care two hoots about what Trump says. In fact, the word “peace” doesn’t exist in the Russian lexicon.
So the bombing campaign continues unabated with Russia showing no signs of relenting. Trump can only fume from the sideline and watch his peace proposals going up in smoke.
If the American hero wants to play hardball with the Russian bear, will he dare put American boots on Ukrainian soil? Or threaten Russia with nuclear attack?
It is unlikely the US will go to war and potentially trigger a Third World War because in this nuclear Armageddon, both countries will be obliterated along with planet Earth.
While “Captain America” races against time to bring peace talks back on track, sifu Putin (a judo master) will keep moving around, throwing off Trump, executing some flying kicks and choking Ukraine until it falls on the floor into submission.
Trump will be gone after four years but Putin will still be on his feet to continue playing with his war game. After all, he has endless years ahead of him. – April 9, 2025
Phlip Rodrigues is a retired journalist.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
Main image: AP
