Trump administration said to be split into "two camps" over war in Ukraine – NBC News
The Trump administration is said to be dealing with a long-running rift between two opposing approaches regarding Russia's war against Ukraine – one camp leaning towards Russia, pressing for a settlement favourable to Moscow, and the other leaning towards Ukraine.
Source: NBC News, as reported by European Pravda
Details: NBC News said the latest rounds of negotiations have highlighted a long-standing internal struggle between two competing visions over how to end the war in Ukraine.
One camp, which includes Vice President JD Vance and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, sees Ukraine primarily as an obstacle to a quick end to the war and argues for pressuring Kyiv into making concessions.
The other camp, led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, believes Moscow bears full responsibility for the war and will only make concessions under continuous pressure and painful sanctions.
NBC News suggests this internal confrontation could also be an early signal of a potential rivalry in the 2028 presidential election between JD Vance and Marco Rubio.
Trump himself reportedly shifts between the two positions.
A former US diplomat who worked in Eastern Europe commented: "It was clear for some time that there was a divide, but we've never seen it in action publicly quite the way we have in the last few days."
Background:
- On 25 November, Trump stated that he has tasked Steve Witkoff and Daniel Driscoll with finalising the terms of a proposed "peace agreement" between Russia and Ukraine. Witkoff is expected to travel to Moscow, and if talks reach the final stage, Trump plans to meet Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
- Trump believes Russia's biggest concession would be agreeing to stop fighting and not seize additional territory.
- According to CNN, Ukraine and the US still disagree on three points of the proposed "peace agreement", including a demand that would see Ukraine withdraw without a fight from the part of Donetsk Oblast that is not currently occupied.
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