[Dargo]

There are talks and phone calls, but no formal negotiations. Moreover, it is customary for negotiations to begin, once hostilities have ceased. This is not the case. What exactly are negotiations about? What is the agenda, what is the expected outcome? What should a peace settlement look like, and who are the parties? What we are seeing now has little to do with negotiation. Trump throws a stone into the pond and watches the waves go. The Americans were cowardly. They didn't want trouble and said, ‘let's find another way to solve this.’ But it is not just Biden who is losing, it is the United States that is losing. And Trump wants to camouflage that. I think he started these ‘negotiations’ on Ukraine to avoid being seen as the president of a losing country. He is trying to prop up Putin so that it looks like he himself is on the winning side. That is what makes his behaviour so pathetic.

The US never said it wanted Ukraine to win the war. The point was that neither side should lose the war. But that is not how wars are fought. You don't start a war not to lose, you start it to win. Even if you get involved in a war, you have to want to win. A win-win situation is impossible. There is no middle ground. That coalition should have been formed on the first day of the war. But nothing was done. Every European aid package to Ukraine was accompanied in the West by a torrent of propaganda: we should not spend so much money on the war. It is not our war. That sound resounded in the US, but also in Europe. Every time sanctions are discussed, there are politicians who argue that there should be a peaceful solution. People like Orbán, who become louder and louder as they hope for a reward from Putin or from Trump.

Russia and Ukraine are the only ones involved. The rest are bystanders. Clowns, playing with lives. People are dying every day, because you have promised to stand by them until this war can be ended on terms they deem acceptable. Russia is not interested in concessions. Russia is interested in Ukraine. And Putin wants peace on his terms. Gaining territory is not even the most important thing. It is about influence. He wants the US and Europe to recognise Russia's sphere of influence and admit that Russia is stronger. He wants it to be recognised that he can do what he wants in the former Soviet region, in Eastern Europe and perhaps also in Western Europe. But Putin will demand more and more, because food makes you hungry. Crimea, for example, has long been Russian, according to Putin. As soon as you give in, he will demand something else. Something that does not yet belong to him.

Clearly, Trump is suffering from delusions. After all, how can he credibly confront China anymore? How are you going to show resolve, courage and strength if you cannot even tame Russia, which is much weaker than China? Perhaps Trump thinks that by appeasing Russia, he is proving to China that he doesn't care about anything, but he forgets that the Chinese think in generations, they have the patience of a monk in his cave knowing that in the end, enlightenment is a given.