After the summit in Alaska between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin ended without any concrete pathway to peace, retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer told Newsmax on Saturday that "the sticking point still is the land, the four provinces" that Putin wants.
“The most important thing in my view is the fact that the two largest superpowers on the planet are at least talking," he said during an appearance on "Wake Up America Weekend."
"And I know everybody is getting down in the weeds, and we're looking at indicators and trying to read the tea leaves. But I think the fact that we have a path, we have a dialogue, it looks like [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelenskyy is going to come right into this.
"I think it's all very positive. What's not positive is what is coming in the way of reactions from Zelensky in Europe," Shaffer said.
Putin will not give up the land he has taken over following 3 ½ years of conflict, he said.
"I think the sticking point still is the land — the four provinces that the Russians want — and the fact that on our side we're calling for a freeze, something that Putin will not accept.
"I was just going through the numbers. The Russians now have 20% of Ukraine. They're making great advances in patrols, so they're winning on the battlefield," Shaffer said.
"It will be difficult for Putin to sell anything that does not permit a recognition of what they've done regarding the advances. So it's good, but there's a lot of challenges still out there they're going to have to face."
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James Morley III ✉
James Morley III is a writer with more than two decades of experience in entertainment, travel, technology, and science and nature.
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