Trump facing challenges prior to Putin summit

Donald Trump is hoping to finally get the Russian-Ukraine war to end on Friday. Trump and Putin are scheduled to meet, with Trump calling it a “feel-out” meeting with Putin, but you know he wants this war over.

Unfortunately, reports are now surfacing that outside interests are going to try to sabotage the meeting,

Land swapping

Donald Trump had stated to the media that he and Putin would discuss land swaps, with Trump trying to get back territory for Ukraine that was lost or is currently occupied by Russia.

Zelensky, however, threw a wrench into the system by telling Trump that he would have to hold a national referendum meeting for any such deal to take place. Trump stated, “I was a little bothered by the fact that Zelenskyy was saying I have to get constitutional approval.

“He has approval to go to war and kill everybody but he needs approval to do a land swap. Because there will be some land swapping going on. I know that through Russia and through conversations with everybody.”

I want this war over as much as anyone, but I think Trump is way out of line here. Can you imagine how the United States would react if we were at war and another country made a deal for peace without consulting us or getting our approval? I don’t like Zelensky, but it is his country, so as president, he has to have the final say. Now, Trump could walk away from it if Zelensky says no, but it should be his call.

Testing Putin

There are a lot of theories about this upcoming summit, but NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte leaned into what Trump hinted at when he addressed the summit with the media.

Rutte stated, "Next Friday will be important because it will be about testing Putin, how serious he is on bringing this terrible war to an end.”

I agree, and the fact that Trump and Putin have had a fairly decent relationship will play into that.

I think Trump will be able to tell if Putin is being serious about offers or just making nice for the cameras. Trump, however, will need to hold that temper of his, or this could all blow up.

Sabotage

Some people may not want to see peace between Russia and Ukraine, which has Russia's investment envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, very worried.

He stated, "Undoubtedly, a number of countries interested in continuing the conflict will make titanic efforts to disrupt the planned meeting between President Putin and President Trump.” He did not name names, but this is clearly concerning.

For Putin’s part, the Kremlin says Putin is coming into this with an open mind, releasing a statement that read, "This will evidently be a challenging process, but we will engage in it actively and energetically.”

This is a big deal for Trump, and it has become a huge nightmare for him. Trump vowed to have this war over on his first day, stating he was the “only” person who could make that happen, possibly even before he took office. I knew it was all talk, but the media and Democrats are really starting to push this, and he cannot have this hanging over the administration when people head to the voting booths in 2026.