Karina Bovsunovskaya15:26, 17.02.26

According to the diplomat, Putin is taking advantage of Trump’s weakness in making agreements.

Former US Special Envoy to Ukraine (2017-2019) Kurt Volker believes a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia is likely in the near future. However, this does not mean the end, but only the beginning of further developments. He stated this in an interview with Onet, as reported by Welt .

When asked what he saw in the eyes of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin while serving as President Donald Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine during those years, Volker replied:

“Cold and calculating. He’s decisive and unprincipled. And cynical. Imagine seeing all of these traits in the person standing right next to you. He knows exactly what he wants. He has no qualms about lying to your face. He manipulates people and knows how to apply pressure. All of this leads to the terrible things we’re seeing. But to be like that, you have to be incredibly focused. That’s what Putin is.”

According to the diplomat, the Russian dictator believes that the collapse of the USSR was the greatest tragedy of the 20th century, and also blames Soviet leaders, claiming that “they had a great empire and destroyed it because they were not unprincipled enough.”

“What is Putin doing? He’s trying to restore the greatness of the Russian Empire and sees himself as akin to Catherine the Great or Peter the Great,” Volker added.

He noted that Trump does not understand this because he does not know history and is not interested in it.

“He’s also not interested in, let’s say, the cultural dimension of domination over Russia. He doesn’t understand this country or its people. It’s all the same to him. Who cares who owns it? He doesn’t guide his policies by such questions,” the diplomat explained.

At the same time, the US president is motivated by making money and making profitable deals, which Putin understands and uses effectively, says Trump’s former special representative.

The publication’s journalist recalled that this is precisely why Russia offered the US bilateral economic agreements worth $20 trillion, surpassing Ukraine.

Volker, in turn, added that Moscow chose Kirill Dmitriev for this task, as he heads a state fund.

“Trump has always wanted a state foundation, so this could make him jealous. Dmitriev is sending clear signals – we can do business together. He was educated at Harvard, is eloquent, and has money. He’s exactly the type of person who attracts the attention of the US president. And that’s why Trump has Steve Witkoff on his side as a counterweight to Dmitriev. Witkoff is a similar type,” the diplomat emphasized.

According to Volker, Putin is deliberately luring Trump with money, exploiting this weakness of the American leader.

“It’s almost funny. We can sit here and say this is a predictable situation, so theoretically it’s easy to avoid. But the Kremlin chose a very opportune moment to reveal this amount. It doesn’t surprise me at all. This huge figure will make Trump think, ‘Oh my God, this is enormous. This will be the biggest deal of all time.’ Only it’s unrealistic, because it’s several times greater than Russia’s gross domestic product. Putin can’t afford it. But the idea itself is attractive to Trump,” the politician concluded.

(C)UNIAN 2026