When Donald Trump took to the campaign trail, he made a bold promise that he could end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours.
Yet, nearly three months into his presidency, the war rages on, and Trump’s diplomatic gambit has yet to materialize.
Trump has vented his frustration at Russian President Vladimir Putin over his approach to a ceasefire in Ukraine, threatening a drastic escalation of economic pressure on Russia.
In a telephone interview, he threatened to levy tariffs on Moscow’s oil exports if the Russian leader does not agree to a truce within a month.
In an exclusive interview with Vaultz News, Dr. Victor Doke, a Research Fellow with the Faculty of Academic Affairs and Research (FAAR) at the KAIPTC, pulls back the curtain on the complexities behind Trump’s claims and the potential impact of his aggressive diplomatic threats, including tariffs on Russian oil.
Dr. Doke didn’t mince words when addressing Trump’s bold campaign assertion that he could resolve the conflict in a single day, calling it a “political rhetoric.”
“You can’t come in and resolve a war in one day. It doesn’t work like that.”
Dr. Victor Doke
Stating that Trump has been in office for about two months and some days, he questioned where Trump’s efforts have gotten to in bringing peace.
He opined that rather than easing tensions, Trump’s presidency has seen the continued flow of international support to Ukraine and the growing military and financial commitments that show no signs of abating. “And this even tells us that we are we are in for a prolonged war,” he stressed.
Also, Dr. Doke was skeptical about the effectiveness of Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on Russian oil exports. He said, “What have sanctions done than to push Russia to look elsewhere for trade. That’s what it’s going to do.”
When asked an effect of Trump’s decision on the current ties between US and Russia, Dr. Doke replied, Dr. Doke offered a nuanced view of Trump’s much-discussed relationship with Putin.
“One thing we must be aware of is no matter how Trump wants us to believe that his relationship with Putin is good…These two nations will always serve their interest no matter what.
“At the face level, we are seeing that Trump wants to build a very good, humanly possible relationship with Putin. But Putin is a smart guy. He wants to serve his interest. Trump has to be careful in dealing with Putin.”
Dr. Victor Doke
Additionally, he said that imposing tariffs may not necessarily hinder the war.
“We’ve seen it in the past. What did NATO countries do? They imposed the sanctions. The war still went on. What we saw was Russia finding ways to fund the war.”
Dr. Victor Doke
Addressing the concerns that Trump’s decision to impose sanctions could push US-Russia relations back to the tensions of the Biden era, Dr. Doke said, “I don’t think in this particular moment Trump would afford to do that.”
“I don’t think he would afford to let the relationship or the gains that he may have chalked be lost and then go back to square one.
“He would like to maintain it. So it’s only a threat on his part until he imposes the tariffs. This is only a threat and it won’t send Russia’s relationship back to the time of Biden. We have a perception that Trump has a soft spot, if I could say it that way, with Putin. That’s the way I see it.”
Dr. Victor Doke
As the situation in Ukraine drags on, it’s clear that Trump’s bold claim to end the war in a day was nothing more than an ambitious political statement, far removed from the complexities of real-world diplomacy.
Dr. Doke’s insights suggest that, despite Trump’s threats, the war will likely continue.
It’s safe to say the war in Ukraine will not be resolved in 24 hours—no matter who’s in charge or what the threats may be.
Whether Trump’s strategy will shift the course of the war or simply prolong the conflict remains to be seen.
For now, it seems, the war is far from over, and the complexities of global politics will keep pushing any quick solutions further out of reach.
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