President Donald Trump needs to immediately "put pressure" on Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the Russian invasion of Ukraine, James Gilmore, the former U.S. ambassador to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, told Newsmax Saturday.
Putin has never been willing to negotiate a deal, he told "Saturday Agenda."
"Well, getting him to the bargaining table isn't even the goal because he doesn't want to come to the bargaining table for anything except a capitulation, both by Trump and by [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelenskyy," Gilmore said, adding that there will never be a negotiated deal between Ukraine and Russia.
"They're not going to come and reach any reasonable agreement," he said. "Now's the time to put pressure on the Russian economy and particularly their oil and gas economy."
Gilmore said sanctions by the Trump administration need to be wide-ranging for the greatest impact.
"Sanctions on China, sanctions on India. This is a conflict that we're in. It's time to get serious and make sure that the Russian economy is suffering from this, which it is right now."
That's the only way, he said, for the Russian invasion to be forced to an end.
Gilmore said a lot of attention is being placed on security guarantees to make sure Ukraine is protected from further aggression by Russia. But don't bother, he said.
"They were worthless when they were supposed to stand up to the Budapest Memorandums. They were worthless in all of their treaty and other obligations."
The ambassador said that with strong sanctions imposed now, Trump can force Russia to capitulate.
"And over a period of a long time, no matter what — just like in the Baltics during the Cold War — Russia will not be able to sustain this war and their fascist aggression."
Russia on Saturday claimed more military gains in its invasion of Ukraine, adding more pressure on Trump and world leaders to find a workable solution to the conflict.
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Jim Mishler ✉
Jim Mishler, a seasoned reporter, anchor and news director, has decades of experience covering crime, politics and environmental issues.
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