Putin's propagandist rejoices over Trump "There is no escape for Selensky"

Vladimir Solovyov can hardly believe his luck: Donald Trump's latest statements are completely in line with Vladimir Putin's rhetoric, the TV propagandist rejoices. Volodymyr Selensky's days are numbered.

Vladimir Solovyov is pleased with himself and the world. It was "no coincidence" that Elon Musk praised the Russian delegation as "serious negotiating partners", he said on Russian TV. "We are pursuing classic Russian-Soviet diplomacy, which many have accused of being too slow and too clumsy."

In contrast, Kiev is acting "hysterically" and "excessively theatrically" on the international stage: Volodymyr Zelensky is engaging in "total PR" with "endless accusations". He lacks "meaning" and "substance", the eponym of "Evening with Vladimir Solovyov" on "Rossiya 1" is annoyed.

But now the tide has apparently turned in the political poker over Ukraine. It all started with the visit of US diplomat Steve Witkoff, who spoke to Vladimir Putin for three and a half hours during his most recent visit to Russia, explains Solovyov. This prepared the one-and-a-half-hour telephone conversation that the Russian president then had with Trump.

Soloviev: Trump now understands Russia

The 61-year-old is certain that the whole thing paid off for the Kremlin: "Now we see that many of Trump 's narratives have largely emerged after their talks: the understanding of our position, the knowledge of the history of our relations during these three years [of war], including the diplomatic course and the possibility of reaching an agreement."

"You could have had a lot less territorial losses," the US president reportedly told Selenkyj. But also: "You could not have avoided them altogether. That's not the point." And Kiev? "Ukraine is screaming: 'You can't do this without us. Trump calmly says: 'You had all the time in the world'."

Soloviev now plays a clip of Trump's press conference, which is remarkable: "He explains everything so strongly. Please listen carefully." What excites the presenter and millionaire so much: Trump describes "a situation in which we had no elections in Ukraine, in which martial law is in force, in which the leader of Ukraine - I mean, I hate to say this - is at only 4 percent approval".

Trump "totally agrees with our view"

The country is in ruins, the New Yorker continues. "[The Russians] haven't done that with Kiev yet - I don't think they want to launch too many missiles. They've done it 20 percent, but they haven't done it 100 percent. If they wanted to do it 100 percent, it would probably happen very quickly."

In order to have a seat at the table in the peace negotiations, the people would have to push for new elections. That's not a Russian thing. That comes from me. And also from many other countries," says Trump. Soloviev takes a deep breath. "This is a terrible blow. Zelenskyi thought he had a good relationship with Trump. And suddenly he gets a resounding slap in the face."

Trump has whetted the appetite of the Russians"We can make a deal and share Greenland"

Trump's statement that Zelenskyi said he didn't know where half of the US money had gone also fills the Russian with satisfaction: "I think we gave them 350 billion dollars," says Trump. Soloviev's reaction: "Wow!" Trump calls Zelensky "incompetent". "The expressions he uses are so deep and so right," the presenter enthuses. "They are totally in line with our view."

"There is no escape for Selensky"

The fact that Kiev will only be involved in negotiations if there are elections is the "absolute icing on the cake", says the friend of Vladimir Putin happily. "That's it! There is no escape for Selenskyj."

The Ukrainian president is not only "outdated and unpopular", as Trump put it, but also "very, very weak": "He is worthless", says Soloviev. And he knows that Selenskyj watches his show in the morning. "Have fun," he wishes him.

He won't find the whole thing very amusing, if only because they are talking about things over which he has no influence. The constitution simply does not provide for elections in times of war. And how is a ballot supposed to be organized in an active war zone from which many people have been displaced?

Trump cheats on the numbers

It is also astonishing that Trump is concerned about democracy in Ukraine but has not taken offense at Putin's reign since 2000. The 78-year-old is also using false figures: Selenskyj's approval rating is not 4 percent, but 57 percent. The Ukrainian is therefore doing better than his American counterpart.

Raw materials deal falls throughTrump tried to cheat Selensky so brazenly

The amount that Trump estimates for aid to Ukraine also increases from speech to speech. Most recently it was "more than 300 billion", now it is said to be 350 billion. According to the Telegraph, however, only 175 billion dollars have been approved, of which only 70 billion have been spent so far.

The Kiel Institute for the World Economy has calculated that the USA has spent 114.2 billion euros since the start of the war, while Europe has spent 132.3 billion euros. In addition, the majority of US aid - namely 64.3 billion euros - consists of military support: The Pentagon gives away older material from stockpiles and then replenishes the arsenal with more modern equipment from US manufacturers.

Steve Witkoff - the new Keith Kellogg

However much Washington has given: Volodymyr Selenskyj never said that money had been lost. Trump is adopting the Kremlin's rhetoric unmoved by this - and giving propagandist Soloviev great pleasure.

Allegedly leaked agendaWhy Trump's peace plan would mean the end of Ukraine

And who is Steve Witkoff, who heralded the new cuddly course with Putin? Like Trump, the 67-year-old is a New York real estate mogul and a friend of the president. He only made his first political appearance in 2020. In November, he was appointed special envoy for the Middle East.

The fact that Witkoff, of all people, is the first high-ranking US official to travel to Russia since 2022 is also surprising because ex-general Keith Kellogg is actually Trump's man for Ukraine. However, he plays no role in the negotiations with Moscow - and Wiktoff was also present in Saudi Arabia, while Kellog was sent to Kiev.