The rapidity with which Trump is bailing out Putin simply beggars belief.
As I wrote in my last blog entry,
"We don't know exactly what Trump and Putin are discussing, but their call comes just days after officials in Moscow raised concerns about the US potentially supplying long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine.
When reporters asked Trump if he would provide Kyiv with Tomahawks on Sunday, he replied: "We'll see... I may." The missiles would be "a new step of aggression" in Ukraine's war with Russia, he added" (BBC News: 16 October 2025) (my emphasis)
Which, again, raises the question,
It would seem that events are fast heading that way! (blog entry: 16 October 2025)
And Sean Seddon (left), shortly after the "Trump-Putin" call yesterday, reported that,
"US President Donald Trump says "great progress" was made during a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday, with the pair agreeing to face-to-face talks in Hungary." (BBC News: 16 October 2025) (my emphasis)
Seddon goes on to further report that,
- Writing on his Truth Social platform after the call concluded, Trump said he and Putin "spent a great deal of time talking about Trade between Russia and the United States when the War with Ukraine is over".
- Asked about the prospect of giving the missiles to Ukraine after his call with Putin, Trump said "we can't deplete" the US stockpile of Tomahawks, adding "we need them too... so I don't know what we can do about that". (Ibid Sean Seddon)
The choice of Orban's Hungary as a venue for this proposed meeting between Trump and Putin simply speaks "volumes".
"“The commander in chief reported on recent drone incidents along the Ukrainian-Hungarian border. Ukrainian forces recorded violations of our airspace by reconnaissance drones, which are likely Hungarian,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a statement after a government meeting.
“Preliminary assessments suggest they may have been conducting reconnaissance on the industrial potential of Ukraine’s border areas. I instructed that all available information be verified and that urgent reports be made on each recorded incident," Zelenskyy added, providing no further details." (Politico: 26 September 2025) (my emphasis)
It is becoming more apparent that Trump, in his obsessive desire to have the "laurel wreath crown" of the Nobel Peace Price placed upon his head, is willing to sell Ukraine out to Putin.
Trump is also distancing the US, as a member of NATO, from supporting Ukraine and the security of the UK and Europe against the violent and manic delusions of Putin about re-creating the collapsed USSR.
What more could Putin ask for :-
- with the Russian economy imploding faster and faster,
- with Putin's 'siloviki' more earnestly sharpening their knives,
- with Russians now experiencing long queues to obtain meagre supplies of petrol,
- and with rampant inflation causing an escalation of food prices in Russia.
Konstantin Samoilov (left) previously summed up the current state of Putin's economy as "Russia Running on Fumes".
In his recent discussion on YouTube, he warns against the insidious and growing trend by Putin to ramp up mobilization in Russia.
As he says,
"Do you have a feeling that the situation in Russia has gone too far, and it simply cannot contine like this for much longer.
…
Something big is brewing in Russia right now. I'm expecting a life-changing event that will change the direction for entire Russia" (Inside Russia: 16 October 2025) (my emphasis)
With this backdrop in mind, the phone call between Trump and Putin yesterday takes on a new dimension, especially in light of,
"Writing on his Truth Social platform after the call concluded, Trump said he and Putin "spent a great deal of time talking about Trade between Russia and the United States when the War with Ukraine is over". (ibid Sean Seddon)
Putin, however, seems to have other ideas; delusional ideas about his re-creating the old Soviet Union as his dyed-in-the-wool Soviet foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov (right), is so fond of reminding us about viz.
- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said the crisis in Ukraine was "created artificially for purely geopolitical reasons". (BBC News: 8 March 2014)
- The world should address the “root causes” that led to the “crisis” in Europe and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine …Russia and the West need mutual “guarantees and agreements,” the minister stated, adding that “new geostrategic realities on the Eurasian continent” should be taken into account as well. According to Lavrov, a new “pan continental architecture of truly equal and indivisible security” was being formed on the continent. (Nexus Newsfeed: July 16, 2024) (my emphasis)
- The Ukrainian conflict can be resolved through diplomacy and negotiations, provided that its root causes of the conflict are eliminated, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said. (Tasnim News Agency (Iranian Agency): 25 June 2025) (my emphasis)
Is it any wonder that filled champange glasses are being raised in the Kremlin in honour of Trump?
UPDATE: 19 October 2025: GMT: 08:09
"[Khodorkovsky ] is proposing himself as a “crisis manager” to bring real democracy to the country if President Vladimir Putin leaves office.
On his own potential role in Russia, the former owner of the Yukos oil company said he was “by mentality a crisis manager”.
“My personal interest is what I can do — and that’s [lead] a transitional government, which carries out political reform. And that means only one thing — rule of law.” (FT : 19 December 2014) (my emphasis)
Fast forward to today and, as reported by Sky News,
"Mikhail Khodorkovsky (left) thinks a deal could be struck between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump over Ukraine, but it might involve ceding the Donbas region to Russia." (Sky News: 19 October 2025) (my emphasis)
It is interesting to note that, as reported by S.V. Date,
"In the days following Putin’s invasion in 2022, Trump praised the Russian leader as a “genius” and “savvy” for having sent in troops to kill Ukrainians and seize their land.
In the months to follow, including following his return to office nine months ago, he blamed Zelenskyy for his country getting invaded and former President Joe Biden for letting it happen." (HuffPost on MSN: 18 October 2025).
Underscoring Khordokovsky that a 'peace' deal between Putin and Zelensky might involve ceding the Donbas region to Russia,
"Vladmir Putin demanded that Ukraine surrender key territory in a call with US president Donald Trump earlier this week, according to reports.
The Russian president wants Kyiv to give up Donetsk, a key military objective in eastern Ukraine that has been fiercely defended throughout the conflict, as reported by WaPo." (The Independent on MSN: 19 October 2025) (my emphasis)
Furthermore,
"Putin made the request to Trump on Thursday, just a day before Volodymyr Zelensky flew into Washington DC on Friday for a high-stakes meeting with the US president." (ibid Sam Kiley and Arpan Rai)
In the proposed meeting btween Trump and Putin in Hungary (cf: Paul Kirby) , it would now seem that Trump will be reverting to his former position of ceding Ukraine territory to Putin.
As Gideon Rachman (left) earlier reported,
"Donald Trump’s loose talk of “land swaps” has also [already] set off alarm bells in Ukraine and across Europe. The fear is that a vain and vague Trump will be easily manipulated by Putin — a steely, detail-oriented dictator." (The Financial Times: 11 August 2025) (my emphasis)
Forget 'Tomahawks'.
Like Trump, even Khordokovsky is now willing to give Putin the land that he has stolen from Ukraine, and 'illegally' occupies.
