Sullivan: Putin had a simple goal - keep the war going without new U.S. sanctions. He got both on an open-ended basis.
Right now, Russia is trying to achieve diplomatically what they cannot achieve militarily. They aren’t able to take the rest of the Donbas for 3+ years.
1/
Sullivan: We didn’t want to set up a summit where we were literally rolling out the red carpet for Putin in America to have him come and walk away and continue the war without any clear and convincing outcome.
2/
Sullivan: Trump’s goals were immediate ceasefire or severe consequences. The summit ended with neither — no ceasefire, no consequences. 3/
Sullivan: Rubio is wrong that pressure hurts diplomacy. Putin came to Alaska because he feared pressure. That fear should have been used as leverage. 4/
Sullivan: If President Trump were prepared to escalate sanctions, squeeze Putin harder, I believe it would give him leverage to bring this war to an end more rapidly.
5/
Sullivan: Now is the moment for President Zelensky to look President Trump in the eye, get the support of the European leaders and say, ‘Let’s increase support for Ukraine and let’s increase pressure on Russia.’
6X
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Ukraine PM Yuliia Svyrydenko unveiled the Government's Action Program, a roadmap to strengthen defense, boost the economy, support citizens, and rebuild the country after years of war. 1/
Ukraine will boost defense by spending 50% its weapons budget on domestic production and partnering with global firms like Rheinmetall and Thales for local manufacturing. 2/
The country is advancing toward EU membership by completing legislative screening and starting negotiations across six key clusters, bringing Ukraine closer to full integration. 3/
Rubio: Talks will center on security guarantees Ukraine seeks. If the war ends, how to ensure Russia doesn’t return in 2–3 years.
Ukraine wants guarantees to defend itself and prevent a new war. 1/
Rubio: We sanction Russia, not Ukraine. We arm Ukraine, not Russia. The U.S. President want to end the war.
We want every chance for Russia to say yes to terms Ukraine can live with.
This is a war between two countries, not America, Ukraine and Russia.
2/
Rubio: Europe’s role is in long-term security guarantees Ukraine seeks. They should be a key part and can suggest what flexibility the Ukrainian side might have. 3/
Rubio says Europeans are not coming to the US to protect Zelenskyy from being bullied.
Rubio: We had one meeting with Putin and a dozen with Zelenskyy.
Europeans are coming because we’ve worked with them for weeks. Trump invited them — not to shield Zelenskyy. 1/
Q: Did Putin offer concessions?
Rubio: Not enough for Ukraine, or we’d have a deal. Russia lost 20,000 soldiers in July but keeps grinding on. It’s attrition, a meat grinder — they just throw in more men. 2/
Q: Does giving Russia land set dangerous precedent?
Rubio: Putin already seized land by force. For peace, both sides must concede — otherwise it’s surrender.
Ukraine has the right to security alliances. Territories will have to be discussed. Russia may have to give some up. 3/
NYT: After the Alaska summit, Putin said the war’s ‘root causes’ lie in Russia’s lost Cold War status, not Ukraine.
He avoided calling it a war, referred to ‘the situation around Ukraine,’ and demanded a new European ‘security balance’ to restore Moscow’s global power. 1/
Putin linked today’s fighting to grievances first voiced in Munich 2007 and again in 2022: NATO expansion, loss of Moscow’s hegemony, and a world where Russia no longer sets the rules. 2/
This narrative casts Ukraine as a pawn in a Western plot. By refusing to name the war, Putin implies the real struggle is not territory, but Russia’s status against NATO and the US. 3/
Witkoff: The US and Russia agreed on game-changing security guarantees — U.S. Article Five-style protection.
Russia will have to codify in law that it won’t seize more Ukrainian territory or violate European countries’ sovereignty [except that it did this many times already] 1/
Q: Is Ukraine ceding all of Donbas on the table?
Witkoff: 5 regions have always been the crux of the deal. Russia made some concessions on all 5.
Donetsk is key — that will be discussed Monday with Zelenskyy and European leaders. 2/
Witkoff: President Trump can't agree to any land swap — that’s for the Ukrainians, and they’ve made that clear.
He respects that, which is why we’re moving quickly to Monday’s Oval Office meeting with Zelenskyy. 3X