President Trump Expresses Frustration with President Putin Over War in Ukraine

What Happened?

U.S. President Donald Trump recently expressed frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying he thought Mr. Putin had ‘gone crazy’ due to increased Russian drone and missile attacks on Ukraine. President Trump also added that he thought President Putin was ‘needlessly killing a lot of people.’

The Kremlin downplayed President Trump’s comments, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov saying President Trump’s comments most likely stemmed from an ‘emotional overload.’ Mr. Peskov did not elaborate on exactly what he meant by the phrase emotional overload.

Why it Matters

President Trump’s comments are likely due to frustration with Russia’s continued prosecution of the war in Ukraine. Mr. Putin has given no indications he is interested in any peace agreements unless they include the total surrender of Ukraine to Russia. Ukraine of course has vowed to keep fighting until Russia calls off its armed attacks and ends the war.

During the 2024 Presidential election and during the first few months of his second term in office, President Trump has repeatedly claimed that he knows Russian President Putin well. These claims echo similar assessments by former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, who both during their tenure expressed beliefs that they had figured out what Mr. Putin wants. 

Former President George W. Bush once said he has looked into Mr. Putin’s eyes and saw his soul, the implication being that the two leaders had formed a good working relationship. Later, former President Obama repeatedly bragged about a reset with Russia, the basis of which was his good relationship with President Putin. 

Getting Russia wrong has almost become a way of life for the U.S. government and American presidents. Since the end of World War II, every U.S. President has gotten Russia wrong at some point during their tenure, meaning they often believed they understood what Russia wanted only to discover later on they really had no idea. In that regard President Trump is in good company.

Based on his actions and his own comments, Mr. Putin likely sees peace as something entirely different from what most Americans mean by the word. For Mr. Putin and many Russians, peace means the wholesale elimination of security threats on Russia’s borders, which are many. The Russian people are much more willing than Americans to accept authoritarian rule in order to achieve their security objectives. 

For American statesmen, negotiations are a way to end the war. But to Mr. Putin, negotiations are just a tactic to try to undermine foreign aid and support for Ukraine, which for Mr. Putin can only have one acceptable outcome, the surrender of Ukraine to Russia. When American and Russian negotiators hold talks, they are negotiating for very different objectives.

How it Affects You

President Trump’s frustration with President Putin is understandable. And if the U.S. approves the use of long-range missiles for Ukraine, it could escalate the war with Russia by increasing the chances of the conflict spreading to engulf Ukraine’s neighbors like Poland and the Baltic states.