Klimkin: Waiting for Trump to go crazy and side with us is not a strategy
Pavlo Klimkin (photo - Valentina Polishchuk: LIGA.net)

US President Donald Trump wants to improve relations with Russia, so he refuses to pressure Russian dictator Vladimir Putin on the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war. A personal grudge against Putin may change his attitude, but Ukraine should not count on it. This opinion was expressed by former Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin in an interview with LIGA.net .

According to the diplomat, from a security, nuclear weapons and resource perspective, Trump sees Russia as a great power with which many issues beyond the war in Ukraine can be resolved. For this reason, he is trying not to irritate the Russian dictator.

"Trump doesn't want to put pressure on Putin not because he likes Putin a lot, but because he needs relations with Russia," Klimkin said.

According to the diplomat, this approach could be changed by some emotional event, after which Trump will consider himself personally offended by Putin. At the same time, Klimkin warned against hoping that this is the only way out of the situation.

"Waiting for him to go crazy and side with us is not a strategy. This is one possible option, but hoping for it and betting on it is actually a very bad game for us," Klimkin said.

He emphasized that the US president wants to stay on top of the situation.

"It is very important to understand that Trump does not want to be on our side, but he does not want to be on Putin's side either. He wants to be on his side. He wants to settle the situation and get benefits from all sides. And remain the only one who can guarantee any further stability," the diplomat said.

According to Klimkin, Ukraine needs a "collective game with the Europeans," thanks to which Trump will see a benefit in supporting the Ukrainian vision of ending the war.