Trump, Putin discuss Zelenskiy election

U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President
Vladimir Putin engaged in a May 3 telephone call during which they discussed many
issues, including the election of Volodymyr Zelenskiy as president of Ukraine,
the Russian presidential administration press service reported that day. “The
situation in Ukraine was touched upon in the context of the recent presidential
elections,” the statement said. “Vladimir Putin stressed that the new Kyiv
government needs to take real steps towards fulfilling the Minsk Accords, which
have a critical meaning in resolving the internal Ukrainian conflict.”

In his turn, Trump tweeted afterwards that he “had a
long and very good conversation with President Putin of Russia. As I have
always said, long before the Witch Hunt started, getting along with Russia,
China and everyone is a good thing, not a bad thing …” In a tweet the next
morning, Trump wrote, “Very good call yesterday with President Putin of Russia.
Tremendous potential for a good/great relationship with Russia, despite what
you read and see in the Fake News media. Look how they have misled you on
‘Russia Collusion.’ The World can be a better and safe place.”

Putin will be closely watching the first steps of
Zelenskiy as president, Viktor Medvedchuk, the Russian president’s confidante
in Ukraine, told Ukraine’s 112 television network on May 4. “What he will not
simply say, but what he will do, and build relations based on that,” said
Medvedchuk, who is a leader of the Opposition Platform For Life party that is
likely to qualify for parliament this year.

Zenon Zawada: The current
geopolitical trends in Russia’s favor – including Zelenskiy’s election, the
swelling support for populist-nationalists in the EU ahead of the May
parliamentary election, and current efforts to lift PACE sanctions – are going
to rejuvenate speculation about Trump seeking to relax sanctions against Putin.
However, in those moments when he has demonstrated some independence in foreign
policy – such as removing U.S. troops from Afghanistan or Syria – the Deep
State establishment has succeeded in restricting him. Therefore, even if Trump
does see the current trends as an opportunity to thaw relations with Putin, we
are confident the Deep State establishment won’t allow for that to happen.
Certainly, the U.S. Congress won’t either.

If Zelenskiy decides to capitulate to Putin, which we
believe is possible, high-ranking U.S. officials have indicated they don’t
intend to watch on the sidelines. In an interview published on May 1 on the
valaszonline.hu news site, Volker said Zelenskiy “will very quickly turn people
against him” if he begins concessions to Russia, stressing that “anything can
happen” in Ukraine. David Kramer of the McCain Institute warned any turn
towards Russia “will bring people to the streets” in an interview published in
mid-April by the apostrophe.ua news site.

As for Zelenskiy, it’s clear that he will begin his
presidency with a strong position against Russian aggression. But if he can’t
form a powerful parliamentary faction by the year end and starts to see
pro-Western forces moving to restrict or remove his authority, he could find
capitulation to Russia to be the most pragmatic move, enabling him to deliver
to his electoral base in the southeastern regions what it wants most: an end to
warfare and lower energy prices, particularly natural gas.