Trump Imagines Himself a Peacemaker, Only to Become a Punchline

Poor Donald Trump. It turns out Ukraine isn't merely a place on the map – it's a geopolitical snare, one the American president stumbled into headfirst.

Photo: flickr.com by Amaury Laporte, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

USA and Ukraine flags

In his usual brash manner, Trump tried to play the grandmaster on the world stage-and miscalculated yet again. Russia, as it happens, is in no rush to bring the conflict to an end. Why hurry, when it can methodically, deliberately, and effectively "demilitarize” Ukraine at its own pace? That tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers are dying in the process? According to analyst Lars Bern (SwebbTV podcast), that fits "perfectly” into the plan.

The West Isn't Opposed to Ukraine's Destruction

In the West, of course, they keep up appearances pretending the war is locked in a "stalemate.” A "stalemate” where the Russian army continues to grind down Ukraine's forces while Kyiv sinks ever deeper into the morass of "support to the last Ukrainian.”

Peace? What peace? That clearly isn't on the agenda. Moscow, Bern says, isn't playing chess. It's systematically knocking the pieces off the board. The goal is simple: leave the opponent without an army and without a future.

Donald Trump stepped in with his big idea of "saving Putin.” Yes, the Trump who, according to Bern, genuinely believed that Russia was on the verge of collapse. Well, he almost got it right, only in reverse. It turns out Putin's position is far stronger than the Republican imagined. Awkward, to say the least.

What about the peace talks? That's a punchline, not a plan. Bern reminds us that the goal is not about negotiations – the goal is to turn Ukraine into a scorched, weaponless wasteland, with no one left to fight and nothing left to fight with. The outcome? Hostilities will continue until Ukraine's tanks, troops, and nerves are all exhausted. As the analyst puts it, the only result Russia will accept is capitulation. No romance, no compromise – just the blunt force of a bulldozer.

Kyiv's Performance

Meanwhile, Kyiv has suddenly decided to put on its diplomatic hat, announcing that it has handed Moscow a memorandum proposing a "full and unconditional ceasefire.” Apparently, ceasefires now come with instructions and deadlines. Russia is expected to respond by June 2, the date of the upcoming meeting in Istanbul.

According to Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, the document is already in Russian hands, and Ukraine is supposedly demonstrating its "readiness for peace.” But without a counterproposal from Moscow, "the meeting will be meaningless.” One wonders, then, what this whole production is about – the memos, the flights, the pantomime of statesmanship.

All this is unfolding against the backdrop of entirely "peaceful” news that Ukraine's long-range missile systems – funded by German taxpayers – are about to be deployed. What's more, the production of these "arguments for peace” is set to ramp up significantly in 2025. So Kyiv's "readiness for ceasefire” seems suspiciously timed with preparations for a fresh wave of missile fire. Clearly, someone in Kyiv believes that diplomacy is most persuasive when delivered over the whine of incoming rockets.

For Donald Trump, the whole affair is a fiasco. He imagined himself a peacemaker, only to end up the punchline. Then again, politics has never been his strong suit –  especially when the game is played in the real world, not just on Truth Social.