FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
At the current rate of fire, 50 days theoretically gives Russia time to launch up to 25,000 drones and other missiles toward Ukraine during its nightly bombing...
At first glance, today's announcements from the White House are extremely encouraging for Ukraine.
Kiev will be even more encouraged when it sees the promised defensive weapons appear within its borders.
But when it comes to President Trump's 50-day ultimatum to Russia for a ceasefire, it has happened before and high hopes were collectively dashed by both presidents, Trump and Putin.
In May, the leaders of four major European countries, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Poland, went to Kiev and presented a ceasefire ultimatum to Moscow, or face devastating sanctions.
But President Putin quickly sidestepped this by offering “direct talks” with Ukraine in Istanbul, which Trump more or less ordered the Ukrainian leader to attend. He did as he was told, Putin didn’t show up, and Trump did nothing.
This time it may be different. Donald Trump, at least publicly, is expressing his frustration with Vladimir Putin.
But 50 days gives the Kremlin plenty of room for maneuver. In other words, time to come up with a counteroffer that prevents new sanctions.
At the current rate of fire, 50 days theoretically gives Russia time to launch up to 25,000 drones and other missiles toward Ukraine during its nightly bombing.
Key points of the Trump-Rutte statement
The most important point in US President Donald Trump's "mega statement" from the Oval Office was the addition of secondary tariffs on Russia of 100% if "we don't have a deal within 50 days." Any secondary tariffs are likely to apply to countries that continue to trade with Moscow.
Trump also confirmed what had been said before: high-end weapons would be sent to Ukraine in an operation that would be coordinated by NATO.
During the meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Trump said he was "very unhappy" with Russia and "disappointed" with President Vladimir Putin, adding that he wanted the war in Ukraine to end.
Rutte described the deal as truly great, confirming that the weapons would be paid for by European nations, a decision the alliance leader described as “completely logical.” The value of the weapons runs into billions of dollars.
Trump also said he talks a lot with Putin, describing the conversations as very pleasant. But he stressed that the conversation has no meaning when missiles start hitting cities.
He also would not provide details on how far he was willing to go in response if Putin escalated matters with the US.
"Don't ask me about that," the president replied, adding that he wants to "solve the war." /Adapted from BBC Pamphlet/
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