The Trump administration has shifted its stance on Ukraine

The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has begun to change its stance toward Ukraine, the British newspaper Financial Times wrote in its May 14 article.

At a foreign policy forum held in Washington on May 7, when U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance was asked about Ukraine, diplomats expected him to criticize Kyiv as usual — but instead, “they heard something completely different.” Vance spoke about Russia’s demands to stop the war in Ukraine and said: “In our view, they are asking for too much.” The next day, in an interview with Fox News, Vance repeated this view and added that “Russia cannot expect to be given the territory it hasn’t yet captured.”

According to the newspaper, U.S. officials are showing increasing impatience toward Russian President Vladimir Putin, as doubts grow that “the biggest obstacle to peace might not be Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, but the Russian leader.” The FT writes that the U.S. now sees Putin as the main barrier to a ceasefire in the Russia-Ukraine war because the Russian president is refusing to compromise.

“Americans had a simple idea — let’s charm Russia, pressure Zelensky, and we’ll get a deal. It turned out that charming Russia alone wasn’t enough,” said German diplomat Wolfgang Ischinger, Germany’s former ambassador to the U.S. He noted that he is pleased that Vance has changed his view on Russia and that the positions of the U.S. and Europe are converging. At the same time, Ischinger pointed out that the U.S. Vice President has not “taken the next logical step” and has not said it is time to “tighten the screws” on Russia.

According to observers, Russia’s refusal to compromise is angering Donald Trump. “You can hear the regret in his words. He may realize that he gave too much and got nothing in return,” said Michael McFaul, former U.S. ambassador to Russia.

William Taylor, another American diplomat who served as U.S. ambassador to Ukraine from 2006 to 2009, believes that Trump has come to understand that Putin “is not a friend of the United States.” “He cannot be trusted... the sense has emerged that he is not conducting serious negotiations,” Taylor said.

“Trump clearly sees that Putin is not ready to cooperate. But I’m not sure this will result in meaningful pressure on Putin,” said Eric Green, a Carnegie Endowment staffer who previously served as the senior director for Russia on the National Security Council under President Joe Biden.

U.S.–Ukraine relations have normalized since a dispute between Presidents Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky took place in the Oval Office in February. Financial Times notes that the signing of an agreement on mineral resources has significantly helped to restore the relationship. Ukrainian officials believe that the deal increases the likelihood that the U.S. will continue to support Ukraine’s defense. “Trump is now in the game,” said one Ukrainian official.

At the same time, the publication poses a question: “Has Trump really started to sympathize with Ukraine, or is he just showing he’s ready to punish Russia for its defiance?” Many Western leaders, as well as Trump’s special representative Keith Kellogg, have criticized Putin’s proposal for direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine without halting military operations (something the West and Ukraine are demanding), but Trump “praised Putin’s gambit.”

Experts believe that Russia is waiting for Trump’s patience regarding a peaceful resolution of the conflict in Ukraine to run out. “Putin plays a long game and believes time is on his side. He expects Trump to lose interest, Americans to stop military aid, and as a result, the Ukrainian army to weaken,” said Michael McFaul, former U.S. ambassador to Russia.

Others think that in recent weeks, the risk of Trump abandoning Ukraine has decreased. Thomas Graham, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and former senior director for Russia on the National Security Council staff, said that Trump would find it difficult to achieve one of his main goals — restoring relations with Russia — without first resolving the Ukraine issue. “Too much is at stake. Yes, he could abandon Ukraine, but if he does, it will look like a failure,” said Graham.

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