Putin congratulates Trump on election victory as Ukrainian MP warns against 'illusion' of peace negotiations
by Kit Heren · LBCBy Kit Heren
Vladimir Putin has congratulated Donald Trump on his victory in the US election, as a Ukrainian politician has warned of the dangers of negotiating with the Russian president.
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Speaking during a conference in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Putin said of Trump: "I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate him on his election as president of the United States of America".
This was the first time the Russian president has commented publicly on his US counterpart's re-election on Tuesday.
It comes amid uncertainty about what Mr Trump regaining the White House means for Ukraine. The US is by far Ukraine's biggest financial backer in its war effort against the Russian invasion, but this may now change.
Mr Trump has said he would end the war in Ukraine, now well into its third year, within days of being re-elected.
Read more: What does Trump's victory mean for war in the Middle East and in Ukraine?
Ukraine and many of its European backers fear that this means a peace on terms favourable to Putin and involving the surrender of territory.
Kira Rudyk, a parliamentary deputy from Ukraine's Holos party, told LBC's Tonight with Andrew Marr that President-elect Trump's claim that he would end the war in 24 hours was an "illusion".
She said that such an attempt at negotiation "wouldn't mean anything good for us", pointing out that trying to reach a deal with Putin after the 2014 annexation "never worked, even for a single day. And look where it got us."
Ms Rudyk added: "Knowing what we know, we are trying to deliver this message to the potential new administration of Donald Trump.
"President Zelenskyy is stressing again and again that you cannot have an agreement with Russia until you know - how do you pressure Putin to keep his part of the bargain?
"And as of right now, I don't think anyone has a very good idea of how to do that."
Fred Fleitz says Biden's 'incompetency led Putin to invade Ukraine'
European allies in Nato hope to convince Mr Trump that if he helps to negotiate any peace, it should be done from a position of strength, for both Ukraine and the US.
Mr Zelenskyy is expected to make another plea for more aid as his country fends off Moscow's invasion.
It comes after a former national security advisor for the president-elect has told LBC that Donald Trump was “serious” about ending the war in Ukraine.
Lesia Vasylenko hopes that Donald Trump's rhetoric about Ukraine was 'just to win votes'
Fred Fleitz, the chief of staff of the National Security Council in Donald Trump's first administration, pinned the blame for Putin’s invasion of Ukraine on Joe Biden.
He told LBC’s Andrew Marr that Trump will be “serious” about “ending the killing” in Ukraine amid suggestions the former president could use his relationship with Putin bring an end to the war.
Speaking on Tonight With Andrew Marr, Mr Fleitz said: “The Trump policies, which we call America first here in the US, would have prevented the Ukraine war.
“Joe Biden’s incompetent policies led to the war, made Putin invade, made the war worse and are preventing any peace process from taking place.
“I think the first way we can end this war is to have a president who is determined to do so,” Mr Fleitz added, claiming Mr Trump could be the person to bring peace to the region.
“What we have now by American and British politicians is to dump weapons in Ukraine endlessly but there’s no plan to end the war or to get to a ceasefire, this is not a strategy, this is virtue signalling.”
On whether Mr Trump will pick up the phone to call both Putin and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to organise ceasefire talks, Mr Fleitz continued: “I do know that Trump wants to settle this conflict before January.
“And one way to do this is to engage in a dialogue and a big problem is there has been no dialogue between Biden and Russia since February 2022.
“We can agree that Putin is a war criminal and in a perfect world he would be arrested, but that’s not going to happen, heads of state need to be willing to negotiate with people we disagree with.
“Biden has closed the door to negotiations, President Trump will do better than that.” Donald Trump will do his best to “end the killing,” Fleitz added.
Mr Zelenskyy congratulated Mr Trump on his election win.
Taking to social media, he wrote: “Congratulations to @realDonaldTrump on his impressive election victory!
“I recall our great meeting with President Trump back in September, when we discussed in detail the Ukraine-U.S. strategic partnership, the Victory Plan, and ways to put an end to Russian aggression against Ukraine.
“I appreciate President Trump’s commitment to the “peace through strength” approach in global affairs. This is exactly the principle that can practically bring just peace in Ukraine closer. I am hopeful that we will put it into action together.
“We look forward to an era of a strong United States of America under President Trump’s decisive leadership. We rely on continued strong bipartisan support for Ukraine in the United States.
“We are interested in developing mutually beneficial political and economic cooperation that will benefit both of our nations. Ukraine, as one of Europe's strongest military powers, is committed to ensuring long-term peace and security in Europe and the Transatlantic community with the support of our allies.
“I am looking forward to personally congratulating President Trump and discussing ways to strengthen Ukraine's strategic partnership with the United States.”