Belarus Segodnya Editor-in-Chief: it is not Russia that is thinking of how to dodge US decisions now, but the Western world
US President Donald Trump is breaking the patterns that the Western world has been used to follow – as noted by Dmitry Zhuk, the Deputy Chairman of the Standing Commission on International Affairs and National Security of the Council of the Republic, Director and Editor-in-Chief of the Belarus Segodnya Publishing House, in his talk with the Belarus 1 TV channel
photo: video screenshot
The presidents of Russia and the United States, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, discussed the prospects for resolving the Ukrainian conflict in a telephone conversation on February 12th, and – as reported in the Kremlin – the US leader called for an early cessation of hostilities and a peaceful solution to the problem.
“Pay attention to the headlines in the European printed media: No peace over the heads of Ukrainians and Europeans; Europe caught out by Trump's Russia move; US relations with Europe will never be the same after Trump’s call with Putin,” the Chairman of the Belarusian State TV and Radio Company (Belteleradiocompany), Ivan Eismont, noted. “European officials did not know that call would take place. According to Bloomberg, Europeans are concerned that Trump may conclude a deal with Russia before they have a chance to influence him on the Ukrainian issue.”
Commenting on the developing events, Mr. Zhuk noted: “Trump has again put everyone in an awkward position. Here is the factor of surprise and expression, he is breaking patterns at every step. Moreover, Trump is doing that very professionally and persistently. Actually, it is no need to think that this is some kind of fuss: he has a well-thought-out strategy, absolutely sound goal-setting in the interests of America and promoting his own personality. We can see that Trump has fully drawn the agenda (if we speak about the Western world) over to his side. They are now thinking of how to dodge Trump's decisions. Note: it is not Russia that is thinking about how to dodge America's decisions, but the Western world, supposedly its allies. Accordingly, all these headlines appear [in the media].”
At the same time, Mr. Zhuk stressed that the developing events are just a signal, albeit a positive one. “Conversation will definitely follow. It is already obvious that Ukraine is of no significance for Trump, and European allies are actually approaching this state as well. Trump is pressing them today, threatening with duties and pointing to their dependence. This man causes shock and awe among them, since they have used to follow the methodology and certain templates – but no templates seem to be possible now. It did not work out according to the templates in Belarus in 2020 as well. This is because Aleksandr Lukashenko's personality does not fit into any of their algorithms," he added.
The Deputy Chairman of the Standing Commission on International Affairs and National Security also drew attention to the fact that Trump is a fairly determined man – ‘who is backed by a huge economic and military force, and this is most important in the current situation’.
As for Russia's position, Mr. Zhuk recalled that Moscow had repeatedly stated its readiness for negotiations. “Let's hope that the blood shedding will cease and people will stop dying. Meanwhile, it is hardly possible to predict right now the agreements they come to,” he added.
