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Former national security adviser John Bolton said during a recent interview that Russian President Vladimir Putin may be at risk of “overplaying his hand” with President Trump amid the talks to end the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine.
Bolton, a vocal critic of Trump, said that Russia is still “suffering” economically from the sanctions that Western Europe and the U.S. have imposed over the three-year war in Eastern Europe, but he argued that Putin is still in a “very strong” position politically.
“But as this war drags on, I think his position does get weaker. The real question is whether, between the efforts of the United States, the efforts of Europe to get a Ukraine-Russia ceasefire, it’s going to happen,” Bolton said during his appearance on John Catsimatidis’s radio show, “Cats Roundtable” on WABC 770 AM.
“Putin has already gotten a lot of concessions for what he wants. He wants to hold on to the territory Russia’s seized in Ukraine … but I think at this point, he may be at risk of overplaying his hand with Trump,” Bolton said.
Ukraine and its allies in Europe — France, Germany, the U.K. and Poland — have turned up the pressure on Russia to accept a 30-day ceasefire that would start as early as next week.
“Ukraine and all allies are ready for a full, unconditional ceasefire on land, air, and at sea for at least 30 days starting already on Monday,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Saturday. “If Russia agrees and effective monitoring is ensured, a durable ceasefire and confidence-building measures can pave the way to peace negotiations.”
Trump has pushed for both countries to sign on to a temporary truce, a plan only Ukraine has endorsed so far. The president has warned that if the deal is not forged, Russia could suffer from more sanctions.
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