Putin Defies Trump, EU Cornered, Ukraine's Forces Surrendering in Kursk | Scott Ritter

Summary

In a video analysis by Scott Ritter, the intricate geopolitical dynamics surrounding the Ukraine-Russia conflict are unraveled, with a specific focus on the delicate interplay between key global figures such as President Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump, and European leaders. Ritter delves into the strategic maneuvers of the U.S. and its European allies while spotlighting potential diplomatic resolutions. As the European narrative shifts towards ceasefire valorization, Russia positions itself strategically, accentuating existing tensions and unforeseen alliances, underlining a complex landscape where diplomatic engagements oscillate dramatically between theater and strategy, potentially reshaping global power relations.

Highlights

• Trump and Putin are engaging in a clandestine chess game over Ukraine, with major global implications ♟️.
• Europe's stance appears to be softening towards Russia, possibly accepting ceasefire conditions they previously opposed 🌐.
• The United States is strategically maneuvering to disentangle from the European conflict web, focusing more on Asian dynamics 🎯.
• Zelensky's influence seems to be waning as diplomatic games intensify between Russia and the U.S. ⚖️.
• The future of Ukraine hangs in the balance, with Russia poised to capitalize on diplomatic openings ✨.

Key Takeaways

• The delicate dance of diplomacy is playing out on a global stage, with Ukraine caught in the crossfire 🌍.
• Trump's strategic plays hint at a deeper geopolitical chess game, particularly with Russia and its European neighbors ♟️.
• A ceasefire seems more of a strategic maneuver than a peace initiative on the Ukrainian frontline 🚩.
• European leaders now appear cautiously optimistic about a ceasefire, diverging from their previous hardline stances 🌐.
• U.S. and Russia are engaged in what seems like a high-stakes diplomatic theater, affecting global alliances 🌏.

Overview

In an explosive dialogue, Scott Ritter dives deep into the dynamics at play within the Ukraine-Russia conflict, illustrating how players like Trump and Putin are maneuvering on a grand geopolitical chessboard. With Trump’s under-the-table movements and Putin’s calculated responses, the stakes have never been higher on this global stage.

Europe finds itself in a precarious position, attempting to rally unity for their earlier strong stance against Russia, but now showing signs of backing a ceasefire. This shifting narrative exposes the complexities and potential shifts in alliance dynamics as world powers realign their strategic interests.

With Ukraine at the center, the interplay between ceasefire discussions and strategic diplomacy unfolds, where the U.S. and Russia's clandestine meetings may reshape not only the immediate conflict but broader global power dynamics. As these superpowers engage in strategic theatrics, the world's eyes remain fixed on the unfolding drama.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 00:30: Introduction to Trump's Ceasefire Agreement The chapter discusses the new ceasefire agreement between the Trump Administration and Ukraine. Donald Trump remarks on various aspects of the situation concerning Ukraine and Russia, noting ongoing discussions in Russia involving representatives like Steve Witkoff. Ukraine has conditionally agreed to the terms.
• 00:30 - 01:30: Ceasefire Expectations and Challenges The chapter titled 'Ceasefire Expectations and Challenges' discusses the anticipation for a ceasefire between conflicting parties, with a specific hope that Russia will agree to it. It highlights the grave loss of life, particularly among young people, with thousands being killed weekly, emphasizing the human cost of the conflict. The narrative underlines the shared desire for cessation of hostilities, regardless of nationality, underscoring the universal wish for peace.
• 01:30 - 02:30: Russian Perspective on Ceasefire This chapter discusses the perspective from Russia regarding a ceasefire. The transcript features a speaker expressing frustration about the current state of affairs, specifically critiquing the cost of the situation to the United States and other countries. There is a sentiment that such a situation could have been avoided under different leadership, specifically mentioning 'if I were president.' The urgency to stop the ongoing situation is stressed, but detailed reasoning or background about the conversation around the ceasefire or the perspectives from both parties involved remains incomplete in the transcript provided.
• 02:30 - 03:30: Strategic Implications of Ceasefire Ukrainians and Russians express reluctance towards accepting a ceasefire. The Russian president's unexpected response surprises many. Ukrainians may seek a 30-day ceasefire despite complexities.
• 03:30 - 04:30: Political Maneuvering and Talks The chapter discusses political strategies and the complexities involved in ceasefire negotiations. Key points raised include the dilemma of handling territories with breached borders and the consequences of a 30-day cessation of hostilities. It questions whether a ceasefire will lead to a peaceful retreat of forces or if they should be held accountable for civilian atrocities. The narrative highlights the challenges faced by the Ukrainian leadership in navigating these sensitive political talks.
• 04:30 - 05:30: Historical Context of US-Russia Relations The chapter summarizes the historical context of U.S.-Russia relations, focusing on recent military tensions. It highlights the uncertainty over orders for troops to lower their weapons and surrender. The discussion covers issues along a contact line that's nearly 2,000 km long, and notes the advancement of Russian troops throughout this line.
• 05:30 - 06:30: Europe's Ceasefire Stance The chapter titled 'Europe's Ceasefire Stance' discusses the strategic considerations and potential implications of a ceasefire in Europe. The text suggests that a ceasefire could be advantageous for encircling military units, raises questions about how the 30-day period would be utilized, and considers whether it would lead to continued forced mobilization, rearming, and weapon supplies.
• 06:30 - 07:30: Proxy War Dynamics The chapter discusses the challenges and concerns related to control and verification in proxy wars. It raises questions about how to ensure that past mistakes are not repeated and highlights the importance of common sense in managing such conflicts. The focus is on the need for effective mechanisms to regulate and verify military activities to prevent escalation.
• 07:30 - 08:30: US-EU Relations on Ceasefire The chapter discusses the complexities involved in US-EU relations regarding a ceasefire agreement. It touches on the details of how the ceasefire will be implemented, who will be responsible for giving orders to cease hostilities, and the implications of these orders. The text highlights the challenges in monitoring and enforcing compliance along a 2,000-kilometer stretch, and determining responsibility in the event of a breach of the ceasefire.
• 08:30 - 09:30: Diplomatic Efforts in Riad The chapter titled 'Diplomatic Efforts in Riad' discusses the importance of blaming others cautiously when agreements are broken. It highlights the necessity for both sides to carefully study issues related to the agreement. The idea of diplomatic efforts is supported, but certain issues still need to be examined and discussed further. Consultations with American partners are planned to address these issues.
• 09:30 - 10:30: Zelensky's Political Future This chapter discusses the political future of President Zelensky in the context of the ongoing conflict. A potential phone conversation with President Trump is suggested to talk about ending the conflict peacefully. However, the complexity of achieving a ceasefire is highlighted, reflecting the challenges and considerations that Zelensky may face in his political endeavors. The chapter outlines the contrasting ideas and issues related to the ceasefire proposal and Zelensky's potential strategies for moving forward.
• 10:30 - 11:30: Conclusion: Diplomatic Masterclass This chapter concludes with an examination of the diplomatic complexities between Ukraine, the United States, and Russia. It highlights the misconception that diplomatic interactions occur in isolation, particularly focusing on the recent dialogue between the United States and Ukraine. The narrative criticizes the notion that the outcomes of these dialogues are groundbreaking or unprecedented, emphasizing that Russia has already been aware of, and engaged in, the ongoing diplomatic processes.

Putin Defies Trump, EU Cornered, Ukraine's Forces Surrendering in Kursk | Scott Ritter Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 the new agreement between the Trump Administration and ukrainians and here is what Donald Trump said about that a lot of things obviously we'll be discussing uh what's happening with respect to Ukraine in Russia uh at this moment we have people talking in Russia we have Representatives over there Steve witkoff and others um and they're in very serious discussions as you know uh Ukraine has agreed subject to is what's
• 00:30 - 01:00 happening today to a complete ceasefire and we hope Russia will do the same thousands of people are being killed young people usually mostly young people we're just talking about it thousands of young people are being killed a week and we want to see that stop and they're not Americans and they're not from the Netherlands for the most part no they're not from they're from Russia and they're from Ukraine but they're people and I think uh everybody feels the same way we wanted to stop
• 01:00 - 01:30 it's also a tremendous cost to the United States and to other countries and it's something that would have never happened if I were president and it makes me very angry to see that it did happen but it happened and we have to stop it and uh Mark is done here is what he said Scott and many people are arguing why what what's the main reason of talking about seare while they're knowing that the both part
• 01:30 - 02:00 ukrainians and Russians are talking about they don't want to accept a ceasefire but it was some sort of surprise for many people that the Russian president said he responded this way in this situation I think the Ukrainian side might well want to achieve at least 30 days of ceasefire and we're in favor of that but there are nuances
• 02:00 - 02:30 number one is what we're going to do with this sector of breached state border if we stop the hostilities for 30 days what it's going to mean is that well that mean that everybody there is going to retreat without fighting are we going to have to let them go after all the atrocities they have perpetrated against civilians or the Ukrainian leadership
• 02:30 - 03:00 will command them to lower their weapons drop their weapons and Just Surrender how it's going to look that's still unclear and what about other issues along the entire contact line which is almost 2,000 kilm and as you know Russian troops have been advancing almost all along the contact line and there already conditions are
• 03:00 - 03:30 favorable for us to surround and encircle whole military units how are they going to use those 30 days is the cire going to be used to continue forced mobilization to continue rearming to continue supplies of Weaponry to allow
• 03:30 - 04:00 units to regroup but if not if nothing like this is done then the question is bound to arise how is going how is control and verification is going to go how are we guaranteed that nothing like that ever repeats how is it going to be controlled I I really hope common sense
• 04:00 - 04:30 tells everyone how it's going to look like what it's going to look like who's going to give orders to seize the hostilities and what will be the price of those orders just imagine 2,000 kilom who's going to determine who who who broke the the ceasefire along those 2,000 km and who's going to
• 04:30 - 05:00 lay blame on on others for breaking this agreement those are all issues that require very careful studying from both sides so the very idea is great I think is correct and we of course support it there are though certain issues that we still need to look into and to discuss and we need to hold con consultations with our American Partners
• 05:00 - 05:30 counterparts maybe we need to have a phone talk with President Trump to discuss that with him as well but the very idea of ending this conflict in a peaceful manner we support that he simply says that the idea is so nice to think of but how can we Implement that the various issues that he he has raised during the his response what's your take on the way that Russians are thinking of a ceasefire
• 05:30 - 06:00 between Ukraine and Russia well first of all we have to stop pretending that all this took place in a vacuum we have to stop pretending that uh this narrative began in Riad earlier this week with the dialogue between the United States and Ukraine that somehow what came out of that dialogue was new and Innovative and Earth shattering and that uh you know Russia is receiving this for the first time uh that you know
• 06:00 - 06:30 for the first time Russia's going back to the United States with its uh response this is absurd in the extreme uh this is a narrative that began you know back during the campaign when President Trump then candidate Trump was given horrible advice uh by his uh principal advisor on Ukraine Keith Kellogg um horrible advice and that advice turned into policy formulations that were unrealistic IC
• 06:30 - 07:00 both in terms of timelines and expectations um expectations about how Russia would respond and what America could do to bring to the you bring to the table um unfortunately we saw that Keith Kellogg's uh pronouncements were embraced by the Secretary of Treasury designate uh Scott Bessant who has become the Secretary of Treasury who has made ridiculous comments about pressure that can be put on Russia economically comments that the president United States Donald Trump Trump bought into
• 07:00 - 07:30 and repeated and and still in some ways continues to articulate um that the this is his thinking um but a reality check came in um in the form of Russia just refusing to even engage um Russia wouldn't pick up the phone wouldn't talk um and the reason why is that they rejected Keith Kellogg's formulations out of hand uh this led to um Steve witkoff who is normally the Middle East Envoy being sent to Russia on February
• 07:30 - 08:00 11th um why why would wiof be sent there because Muhammad bin Salman Saudi um Crown Prince who you know is very knowledgeable to the Russians has worked with the Russians uh intensively Russia is after all a member of the OPEC plus so they have constant discussions about Not Just Energy security but when you're talking energy security you're talking Regional stability I think sometimes people forget that there is direct connectiv
• 08:00 - 08:30 that you can't have energy security if you're an energy producing Nation like Saudi Arabia um and your economy is dependent upon the price of oil um and you make budgets based upon the price of oil what you need is consistency and stability and regional conflict brings the exact opposite makes it impossible to balance a budget makes it impossible to do have anything predictable outcomes um and so Saudi Arabia is very interested in stability and they watched Steve witkoff come in
• 08:30 - 09:00 and seize the Reigns of um Authority away from you know the Biden Administration when it came to the Gaza conflict watch how Steve wikov behaved and and and with the Israelis and with others and was deeply impressed and understood that Steve Whit Steve wit's Authority came not from his knowledge of the Middle East he has none um but his ability to be the vector for Donald
• 09:00 - 09:30 Trump to channel uh Donald Trump uh he was very close with Donald Trump and Donald Trump trusted him implicitly and so Muhammad bin Salman called uh Vladimir Putin and said this is the guy that you need to talk to uh this is the guy that can get it started and the hint was dropped and next thing you know Steve wiof is on his on his way to Moscow February 11th to ostensibly recover a prisoner Mark Fogle who had been in prison by the Russians for a
• 09:30 - 10:00 drug offense um but this wasn't just a prisoner retrieval Mission um he met with Vladimir Putin now let me just again sometimes you got to explain things to people because they don't understand the significance of it you just don't meet with the Russian president just like you just don't meet with the American president when you meet with heads of state of this caliber there has to be a reason his time is valuable um why is he going to allocate time to Steve witkoff to talk about Mark
• 10:00 - 10:30 Fogle nope it's because he wants to take advantage of wit kovs access to Trump to receive a message and to send a message and whatever conversation they had um resonated greatly and it wasn't just a meeting between wiof and um and and and Putin Putin brought in somebody else a name that nobody unless you've been following Russia intimately like me um nobody knew before this happened how many people can honestly say that they who would cual to me was when they heard that name most
• 10:30 - 11:00 people went to Google and said who the hell is caral Demetrio and why is he meeting with Steve wiov what's the importance why is the head of Russia's you know Sovereign investment fund meeting with the Emissary of Donald Trump because they speak the language of international business and because dimitriev was setting wikov straight on the reality of the Russian economy um you know the false expectations uh that Trump had about certain policy directions that could put
• 11:00 - 11:30 pressure on Russia you need to set the record straight what can be achieved and what can't be achieved and to talk about the potential of economic the economic benefits of renewed economic relationship um this is broader than just Ukraine in fact the the conversation appeared to discuss almost everything but Ukraine um wiof went back the very next day Trump has a 90minut phone call with Donald Trump uh with with Vladimir Putin I bring this up
• 11:30 - 12:00 again because if you're acting as if what we're hearing from from Putin today is the first time he's considered Donald Trump's position you're wrong you're fundamentally wrong he heard Donald Trump's position back on February 12th when they had 90 minute phone call where they exchanged ideas this phone call didn't just happen out of the blue was very they were both ready for it they both knew what they wanted to say they said it they listened and then it was followed up by a meeting in Riad between the Secretary of State and his uh
• 12:00 - 12:30 counterpart the foreign minister of Russia wasn't just them Michael Waltz National Security advisor met with his counterpart Mr usikov and Dimitri kill dimitrio was there too meaning with Steve wikov you had three levels of connectivity there very detailed exchange of ideas rather than simply Ukraine I bring this up because what we're seeing here is theater that's it this is
• 12:30 - 13:00 theater you know Marco Rubio when he met with the Ukrainian delegation in Riad earlier this week wasn't making a final deal Rubio knew he wasn't making a final deal what Rubio was doing was beginning a process but it was a process that was hampered by several things one by the ukrainians themselves who up until were refusing to how how can you talk about a
• 13:00 - 13:30 negotiated settlement with Russia when the constitution of Ukraine prohibits negotiation I mean this seems to be one of those stumbling blocks and how do you proceed when no matter what the president United States said because let's just reiterate what Trump has said is some of the foundational understandings that have been reached between the United States and Russia a Russia didn't start this war whap there goes the entire European narrative that this is a war of Russian aggression Russia didn't start this war Russia was
• 13:30 - 14:00 right to defend its interests these are fundamental things guys previously they've been dismissed as Kremlin talking points but they're not they're statements of fact fact-based reality two Ukraine will never be a member of NATO ever just not going to happen boom three there won't be European peacekeeping forces deployed to Ukraine isn't going to happen boom and we can go on and on
• 14:00 - 14:30 this this is the reality that was set forth having articulate oh perhaps the most important the war in Ukraine is a proxy war between the United States and Russia Ukraine is just a proxy that's sort of like it the defining thing when you have the Secretary of State articulate this saying this is between us and Russia we're the Waring parties Ukraine is a proxy this is fundamental so because when you say that you now understand the
• 14:30 - 15:00 role that Ukraine plays they're not driving this ship they're just the proxy this ship is being driven by the United States the United States started this war the United States is the one who set the objectives of this war which we know are the Strategic defeat of Russia and Ukraine is simply the proxy ironically it's not just that this is a Kremlin talking point I remember when I was put on the Mir thwarts death list and put on the center for countering disinformation
• 15:00 - 15:30 Hit List um one of the reasons why they said is that I was saying that the war is a proxy conflict between NATO and Ukraine and that apparently is the death penalty I'm supposed to be killed because I said that I found it interesting the timing of this because about a week and a half later the Ukrainian defense minister came out and said oh no no no this is a proxy war between NATO and Russia and we're happy to be that give us more weapons and we will serve as your pro guys this has been known from day one
• 15:30 - 16:00 only idiots and the mainstream media I guess they're the same have been articulating something different and so now we we have you know foundational understanding of this conflict so what is the role of Ukraine it's an insignificant role and we saw we saw the way that Donald Trump treated um zalinski in the white house dismissive it was an ambush time to demean him and there's a reason for this what happened in Riad we know zalinsky
• 16:00 - 16:30 was in Riad we all saw the photographs of him meeting with um Muhammad bin Salon the Crown Prince but the president of Ukraine why wasn't he heading up the Ukrainian delegation why was the presidential adviser heading it up because United States said zinski is not welcome at the table don't bother we don't want you there you're not part of the solution you are the problem so again we have to understand
• 16:30 - 17:00 all this when we bring into you know try and put context into the statement that Marco Rubio used to initiate everything that you're premising the show on um but there's something else that happened too because who visited the White House prior to zelinsky's humiliation Emmanuel mcon and kir starmer and they visited the White House they tried to articulate Europe's vision of what's going on which wasn't by the way a vision predicated on a ceasefire
• 17:00 - 17:30 but a vision predicated on continuing this conflict until Russia was defeated again let's just make things very clear Europe was dead set against the Seas fire the European posture was we must humble Russia Russia must be defeated so that Russia knows it can never stand up to Europe again that's what they said I'm not making it up and
• 17:30 - 18:00 they met to talk about 8800 billion euros worth of infusion of Defense funding getting boots on the ground the French we're talking about getting their nuclear deterrence deployed into Germany putting air cover over Ukraine war war war war war war war and now you're Donald Trump saying I want to bring this war to an end if I only negotiate with the Russians without bringing in Ukraine then we have a problem with Europe because the Strategic objective for R for Donald Trump here is peace and
• 18:00 - 18:30 stability in Europe so the United States can disentangle itself from the European web and reallocate diplomatic economic and Military resources to the Pacific to deal with the principal issue of China never forget that Ukraine is a sow for what Trump wants to do with China not military we talked about this before I don't believe that Trump's looking for a war with China I think Trump's looking for an equitable solution to the tensions that exist between China and the United States it's a whole different negotiating posture and step and I don't
• 18:30 - 19:00 want to bring it up here except to point out that you can't do that if you're Tangled Up in a war in Europe and left to their own devices the Europeans apparently were willing to have a war with Russia that would be problematic for the United States so how do you resolve this and again I want to just once again remind your audience that prior to the meeting in Riad between Rubio and yach the U president advisor uh to the president of Ukraine um Europe
• 19:00 - 19:30 was talking about humbling Russia on the battlefield that there could be no ceasefire that this war could only end with a Russian military defeat and Europe was going to be the one to ensure that defeat occurred that was the European posture then Marco Rubio comes out with Mike Waltz and they talk about we've agreed to a 30-day ceasefire um you know and there certain conditions that the ukrainians laid out but it's a 30-day ceasefire and the ball is in Russia's Court those are very
• 19:30 - 20:00 important words why because immediately out of every capital in Europe came as following statement almost word for word we love the idea of a ceasefire wait a minute didn't you just say that there can't be a ceasefire Russia must be humbled militarily defeated but now Europe saying we love a ceasefire it's the greatest thing and the ball is now in Russia's Court they said it everybody said the same thing
• 20:00 - 20:30 over and over again which means that this was scripted what the United States did is trap Europe that's what happened in Riad it's not about trapping the Russians everybody oh look we outflanked the Russi you never outflank the Russians how do you outflank somebody named Sergey lavro that's been around forever who's been doing this forever Vladimir Putin who's been the leader of Russia for a quarter of a century these Russians are better prepared they know more they know about
• 20:30 - 21:00 themselves they know about the world they know about everybody this is not their first rodeo this is not their fifth Rodeo this is not their 1000th Rodeo they invented the freaking rodeo and um and so they you know you don't outmaneuver the Russians but Donald Trump outmaneuvered Europe because now Europe is committed to not war but a ceasefire Europe has said that is the best outcome that is the outcome we want a ceasefire and the ball is in
• 21:00 - 21:30 Russia's Court what's important about that term it implies a process I mean it's a reference to a game they didn't say take it or leave it Russia no one said that they said the ball's in your court so that's like a tennis thing you know they just hit the ball into Russia's court now that ball can either score point in the match or Russia will f it back game on look at what Russia's
• 21:30 - 22:00 done listen to what Vladimir Putin said ceasefire is essential essential we accept a ceasefire we accept it they're playing the game you see what happened there they're back then they went backand back and said but there are conditions now here's the interesting thing about the conditions they didn't send the ball back into the Ukrainian court because they don't give it damn about the ukrainians they didn't send it
• 22:00 - 22:30 back into the European court because Europe Frankly Speaking took themselves out of the game the moment they said we accept the ceasefire they went to the American court and the Americans are receiving the Russian statement today except this isn't the first time they heard this Nemo it's the second time or the third time they've heard this nothing new is being presented to the Americans nothing new and they will make sure that that Point's driven
• 22:30 - 23:00 home when as Putin said maybe there needs to be a phone call between us and and Trump when you have the president of Russia and the president of United States speaking on such an important issue um that's bad news for Europe and that's bad news for Ukraine because the United States is going to agree to most if not all of Russia's conditions because it's a game we started we got Ukraine to agree to play the game then we got Europe to buy into
• 23:00 - 23:30 the rules of the game now the Russians are saying reality base because that's the other thing that the Trump Administration kept talking about whether it's Pete Pete Heth or whether it was JD Vance whether it it's Marco Rubio whether it's a president himself that we have to be dealing with the situation as it exists on the ground the reality of it and Russia is about to set forth the definition of what reality is um I don't think that this is going
• 23:30 - 24:00 to be the last negotiation but I think this is the most important negotiation everything else was a setup for this the ukrainians have committed to a process Europe is bought into the process Russia agrees to the process we have a tennis match and now Russia is sending the ball back but the player isn't Ukraine first of all let's understand the following zalinsky has been sidelined United States humiliated him in
• 24:00 - 24:30 Washington DC and then he was in Riad meeting with the the Crown Prince but he wasn't allowed to be the head of the delegation he's the problem not the solution and right now inside u in Kiev you you hear talk now that he's out he's done and my guess is that he'll be out of there within two weeks um I don't know where he physically is right now I don't know if he's on the sidelines of the G7 meeting I don't know if he return to Kev but he can't last long in Kev
• 24:30 - 25:00 he's been discredited as a leader humiliated as a leader um and he has once again directly contradicted the United States after a meeting where his negotiating team uh received uh information from Marco Rubio about territorial concessions that this isn't going back to 2014 or 2022 it's dealing with the reality that exists today uh and the Ukrainian delegation went yeah we understand that zalinski came out and said no 2014 we get everything back we get all of
• 25:00 - 25:30 Nova Rosia you know Kon Zaria donets lugans and we get Crimea that's the only term he is so far removed from reality it's not even play so he's finished uh it's the end of zalinski when zalinski goes you're going to see a collapse of Ukraine political will Social will um and all Russia has to do is keep the game playing until Ukraine gets into a position where where they will comply with Russia's demands and Europe will
• 25:30 - 26:00 have no choice but to follow along this is the game that's being played it's called diplomacy it's a master class being put on by the Russians and I believe with the assistance of the United States who's not in moska right now from the United States Marco Rubio not there why why isn't the Secretary of State uh who has been involved in these negotiations not present for the most most important
• 26:00 - 26:30 negotiation because he's always been a figurehead there's somebody else pulling the string somebody else calling the shots and uh Rubio isn't needed for this in fact he's a distraction from this because Rubio has tainted himself with um you know the the Ukrainian brush and the European brush so he's over there now playing with Europe well what happened to the last person who um was supposed to be the one leading the efforts and they got sidelined and sent to Europe his name was Keith Kellogg you do know that he was fired he's no longer the special Envoy I'm not saying that
• 26:30 - 27:00 Rubio is going to be fired I'm going to say that Rubio is not going to be a major part of the Russian negotiation going forward this is now in Donald Trump's hands Steve witkoff although they said he's not going to be the the principal negotiator Steve witkoff is the facilitator and he's got this in Trump's hands um and I think that the once Trump and Putin nail down the basics they'll bring in a closer who will come in and close the deal that's going to happen in a matter of weeks I think zalinski is
• 27:00 - 27:30 going to be gone Ukrainian government collapses now you have the conditions to where Russia can come in and participate in a postconflict uh election that gets their man installed uh gets a parliament a Rada installed that's willing to make the Constitutional changes that Russia views as a prerequisite for densification um who will agree to demilitarization on the terms set forth by Russia and Europe will have no choice but to comply with this um this is what
• 27:30 - 28:00 happened in Riad Europe was trapped into a position where a ceasefire is now the primary policy objective as opposed to humbling Russia defeating Russia all the things they were talking about that's not being talked about now they're talking about you know the necessity of a ceasefire this is the game we're moving towards a ceasefire the conditions that need to be met to make a ceasefire possible