Keith Kellogg, U.S. special envoy for Russia and Ukraine, told Newsmax on Monday that Ukraine and Russia need to realize that President Donald Trump could and would walk away from peace negotiations.
Kellogg said Monday’s call between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin jump-started talks, which is encouraging, but the president won’t abide a bad deal.
“I think both sides need to realize he could do that and would do that. I mean, this is one of those, when you go back to the art of the deal, be willing to walk away from a bad deal,” Kellogg said on “The Record With Greta Van Susteren.”
Trump said Monday that Russia and Ukraine “will immediately start negotiations toward a Ceasefire and, more importantly, an END to the War.”
“I really believe he’s right when he says this, that this war wouldn’t have started on his watch,” said Kellogg, a retired Army three-star general.
“So my point is give him some time. I think we’re day, what, 121 in the new administration? And we’ve gone further in 120 days than the previous administration did in four years. And he did it by sheer dint of personality, by reaching out to [Putin] and talking,” Kellogg said. “We’re all impatient. I work off what I call again, Trump time, and we’re trying to get to an end state. And we’re just going to find this out.”
It might be slow going, but Kellogg said Monday was an accomplishment.
“I think what’s accomplished is the fact that you’ve got both sides now actually engaged in discussions, which hasn’t happened before. The last time the Russians, the Ukrainians talked was over three years ago. And the last four years of war, the two sides haven’t really talked,” Kellogg said. “And I think that’s the important piece.
“And is it frustrating? Sure. Because it’s slow and it’s gradual and people die every single day on the battlefield. And President Trump’s been very clear he wants the killing to stop,” he said.
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