Putin decided to intensify strikes on Ukraine after meeting with Trump – Bloomberg
Russian ruler Vladimir Putin decided to continue military escalation, including strikes on Ukraine’s energy sector and other infrastructure, after his meeting with US President Donald Trump in Alaska and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s rejection of Russia’s demands regarding eastern Ukraine.
Source: Bloomberg, citing sources close to the Kremlin
Details: According to the sources, "Putin has concluded that military escalation is the best way to force Ukraine into talks on his terms and that Donald Trump is unlikely to do much to bolster Kyiv’s defences".
Putin intends to continue targeting Ukraine’s power grid and other infrastructure, the sources said.
They added that the talks in Alaska convinced Putin that Trump is not interested in intervening in the war.
In Anchorage, Putin proposed halting hostilities and freezing the frontline in southern Ukraine if Kyiv agreed to cede the remaining unconquered parts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts. He had earlier demanded that Ukraine limit the size of its armed forces and abandon its goal of joining NATO.
Ukraine has rejected these conditions, and Putin believes this justifies his escalation, people close to the Kremlin told Bloomberg.
According to data collected by Bloomberg from Ukraine’s Air Force Command, Russian drone and missile strikes on Ukraine increased by about 46% in the month following Trump and Putin’s talks.
Quote from Bloomberg: "Putin has also been observing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war in Gaza, two people close to the Kremlin said. He views Netanyahu’s campaign in Gaza as more severe than Russia’s war in Ukraine and notes that it has been largely accepted by governments in the US and Europe, undermining their criticism of Moscow."
Details: Putin will continue dialogue with the US but will go on acting as he sees fit, Bloomberg’s sources said.
Background:
- On 15 August, Trump and Putin held their first talks in Alaska.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders met with Trump at the White House to discuss ways of ending Russian aggression through diplomacy.
- Since these meetings, Putin has intensified strikes on Ukrainian regions, particularly the capital. During one large-scale Russian aerial attack on Ukraine, Russian drones violated Polish airspace.
- Trump said that Putin had let him down over ending the war in Ukraine.
- In early September, reports suggested that Trump was becoming increasingly pessimistic about the chances of ending the Russo-Ukrainian war in the near future or of a personal meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy.
Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!