Trump’s invitation to Europe is symbolic victory for Putin – Pavel Dubravskiy

Political strategist and head of Dubravskiy Consulting Pavel Dubravskiy spoke to Alpha News about the upcoming meeting between Russian and US Presidents Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump in Hungary.

“Based on what we know from the Financial Times and other American media, Trump pressured Volodymyr Zelensky to agree to Russia’s terms. We cannot verify this information as definitive and 100% accurate, but it is likely that something similar did occur, as different media outlets cite different sources—both from Trump’s own team and, possibly, from Zelensky’s team. Trump has apparently abandoned the concept of ‘three-way’ negotiations. He invited Putin to Europe, and for Vladimir Putin, this is undoubtedly a symbolic victory. Hungary—a country with friendlier ties to Russia—has also been included. A preliminary meeting at the Foreign Ministry level is also expected—most likely between Sergey Lavrov and Marco Rubio, the US Secretary of State, who holds several key positions in the administration. So far, it looks like this is perhaps Donald Trump’s final move—an attempt to finally resolve the conflict, but on the terms of a compromise for both sides, primarily for Ukraine,” Dubravskiy said.

According to the expert, this meeting is a continuation of the momentum established in Anchorage, Alaska.

“The Tomahawk incident was likely part of Trump’s rhetorical pattern: first, he makes a big deal out of a minor issue, dramatizes it, and then returns to the fact that it’s unimportant and won’t be implemented. It’s likely that the discussions with Russia will not only cover the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, but also other, more ambitious areas of cooperation—for example, cooperation in the Arctic, economic and business projects, including the previously announced Alaska-Russia bridge project. Therefore, the current meeting appears to be a continuation of the momentum established in Anchorage. It’s not for nothing that Mr. Ushakov noted that this momentum still exists and is working—it’s just that not everyone sees the work being done behind the scenes,” Dubravskiy concluded.