A Putin Peace Gambit To End Two Wars At Once

That might not be enough since the EU now needs Russian resources more than Russia needs its business, so he might also require that they coerce Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky into accepting some of his demands for peace.

Trump might be on board, considering that he said shortly after his call with Putin that“we have sanctions on some countries. We're going to take those sanctions off until this straightens out. Then, who knows, maybe we won't have to put them on.”

He also said that Putin“wants to be helpful” on ending the Iran conflict, now in its second week, and did not rule out talking with Iran despite Trump's demand for its“unconditional surrender,” which Iran has refused.

This came amid a report that some of Trump's advisors now urge him to find an Iran exit ramp as oil prices surge and most American voters remain opposed to the war, according to opinion polls.

Putin also described in detail during his meeting how“the entire international economic relations system” is poised for disruption if the Iran war does not soon end.

Of Trump's stated goals at the onset of the conflict, only demilitarization has possibly been achieved, and only to a large degree rather than entirely. Regime change has not happened since the Islamic Republic's permanent military, intelligence and administrative pillars remain intact, though heavily damaged.

Significantly, Iran still possesses its highly enriched uranium, which could be used to make a nuclear weapon. The US is reportedly considering seizing it, but the operation to do so would be huge and could prove very costly in many ways.