[Duda: Trump is the greatest hope to end wars, allies must "stay calm" in the face of his tariff war.]
On April 12th, Polish President Andrzej Duda told Sky News in an interview that US President Donald Trump is very likely to end Russia's war against Ukraine, but any peace must be fair and lasting.
Duda believes that the only hope for Ukraine to achieve peace lies with President Trump because he has enough influence to end this war. Meanwhile, regarding the meeting between Trump's envoy Steve Witkowski and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday, Duda refused to comment on Witkowski's ability.
Duda said that Trump stopped the Nord Stream 2 project during his first term and thwarted Putin's energy ambitions through Gazprom, which fully proves that Trump "knows where to strike to hit the vital point." Given that European leaders failed to bring peace through the Minsk Agreements, Duda believes the responsibility now falls on Trump.
"If there is someone who can force Russia to end this war, it may only be the US President," Duda said. "The question is whether he has enough determination to do so—because ensuring peace is fair and lasting is also very important for Europe as a neighbor of Russia's aggression against Ukraine."
Duda also commented on reports that the US transferred command of the Ukraine aid center located in Rzeszów-Jasionka to NATO allies under a NATO decision—"We were notified beforehand about this change. I have not received any information from the US side about a reduction in American troops. On the contrary."
He recalled his meeting with US Secretary of Defense Esper in February, "We discussed strengthening US troop presence in Poland, and I proposed the idea of establishing a large US military base. At the time, we called it 'Fort Trump.' I still hope this idea can be realized."
Duda described Trump's tariff policy as a "shock therapy," believing it to be a negotiation strategy used by a person who achieved great success in business and trade, and now applies it to the political field. Duda said that this may not be the way European politicians are accustomed to, but Trump is accountable to American taxpayers, not to his European counterparts. In the face of this new transatlantic cooperation model, allies must "stay calm."
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1829204417898560/
Disclaimer: The article represents the author's own views.