Russia’s charm offensive on Trump leaves Europe scrambling to win him back
U.S. President Donald Trump welcomes Russian President Vladimir Putin at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, USA, August 15, 2025
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Russia appears to be enjoying the discomfort of Europe and Ukraine after a week of outspoken criticism from both the White House and US President Donald Trump.
The growing divide has led the Kremlin and Russian state media to lead a charm offensive, praising Moscow’s “harmony” with Washington.
Russia watched as Washington poured cold water on Ukraine and its alliances with Europe last week.
This began when the White House unveiled its new national security strategy last Friday, questioning whether Europe can remain a “reliable ally” and saying the United States must restore strategic stability with Russia.
Then Trump said unguardedly this week: Interview with Politico That Europe is a “decaying” region with “weak” leaders. The president also backed Ukraine’s new elections, saying they look increasingly undemocratic.
Separately, Trump also criticized Ukraine’s approach to peace talks, claiming earlier this week that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had not even read the US draft peace proposal to end the war, while Trump said Russia was “happy with it.”
charm attack
For Russia, that means embarking on a charm offensive to praise Trump and encourage the sense that Washington and Moscow are on the same page about how to end the nearly four-year war. This opportunity has only grown amid Trump’s open disappointment with Ukraine and Europe’s leadership.
On Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reiterated that Russia appreciates Trump’s “desire for dialogue and resolution of the conflict in Ukraine” and that the two sides share “a fundamental understanding that a permanent solution is impossible without eliminating the root causes of the crisis.”
For Russia, the “root causes” of the war include NATO expansion in eastern Europe, a pro-Western leadership in Ukraine, and a desire to invade the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas, where pro-Russian separatists were supported by Russia long before the start of the current war in 2022.
A trader watches as U.S. President Donald Trump greets Russian President Vladimir Putin at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine, on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in New York City, U.S., August 15, 2025.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
So any US-backed peace plan that eliminates some of these bogeymen, hands over the Donbas region to Russia and excludes Ukraine from joining NATO, as well as an agreement that forces leadership elections in Ukraine, is music to Russia’s ears.
This is largely why Moscow is so eager to align itself with Trump and the “original” US-backed peace plan, designed with his input and without Ukraine’s involvement.
war against trump
Meanwhile, Ukraine and its European allies are desperately trying to keep Washington on their side to prevent Ukraine’s potential loss of territory and sovereignty in a peace deal that could be imposed on Kiev and have far-reaching consequences for Europe’s future security.
Left on the sidelines, European leaders are trying to improve Ukraine’s chances of getting a good deal; Zelenskyy has held frantic meetings with regional leaders this week to promote Kiev’s “red lines” in any peace deal, particularly arguments that Kiev receives security guarantees as part of the peace deal and does not have to cede territory to Russia.
Showing a willingness to compromise, Ukraine has publicly acknowledged that future NATO membership is a slim possibility, and Zelenskyy has said he is ready to hold new elections in the country if they can be held safely. But security and territorial guarantees remain a major sticking point and obstacle to any deal with Russia.
U.S. President Donald Trump (left) greets Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy outside the West Wing of the White House on October 17, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Win Mcnamee | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Ukrainian and European leaders said on Wednesday that “hard work” would continue to reach a peace plan that would work in the long term. The leaders of Britain, France and Germany spoke to Trump yesterday about their efforts and reiterated their desire to provide security guarantees to Ukraine as part of post-war peacekeeping efforts. Russia rejects the idea, saying foreign troops in Ukraine would be “legitimate targets”.
However, a meeting of the so-called “Coalition of Volunteers” is being held on Thursday; allies want to maintain momentum and visibility in reaching a solution that will end the conflict and benefit Ukraine and the broader region.
Not wanting to be left behind, Russian leader Lavrov said on Thursday that Moscow had sent its own proposals on security guarantees to the United States and that Europe’s “anti-Russian” efforts had failed.
“We insist on reaching a package of agreements for a strong, sustainable, long-term peace that includes security guarantees for all countries involved.” According to RIA Novosti, Lavrov said:.
“Them [Europeans] They wanted to inflict a strategic defeat on us and then impose Western rules on matters affecting European capitals. “But the plan for a blitzkrieg against Russia using Ukraine failed,” he said.
Washington is reportedly urging both sides to reach a deal before Christmas, but there are doubts that the deadline will be met.
“U.S. pressure will advance negotiations but will not lead to a quick deal,” Eurasia Group analysts said in a note published Wednesday.
“The US-led peace plan could serve as a loose framework for a final agreement. But Ukraine, with European support, will continue to resist significant concessions on territory and neutrality. Moscow will also likely reject a deal that Ukraine can accept.” adding:
“The US is demanding a deal by Thanksgiving, and now it is being reported that Christmas could create an increased movement in one direction or another. But this is unlikely to produce a major breakthrough in the near term.”
Indeed, while the Eurasia Group expects the likelihood of a ceasefire to increase and reduced the likelihood of the baseline “war continues” scenario from 75% to 65% between now and the end of June 2026, it also noted that Ukraine’s challenges on the battlefield, as well as increasing pressure from the United States, have increased the likelihood of the “Ukrainian surrender” scenario from 5% to 25%.
