On August 13 local time, with just one day left until the highly anticipated U.S.-Russia summit, Trump once again waved the "stick" at Russia, stating that if Putin did not accept the proposal for a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia, Russia would face "very serious consequences."

Although he did not specify the details of these consequences, he clearly mentioned economic sanctions as a means.

This is not the first time Trump has issued such threats to Russia. Previously, he had set a deadline for Russia to end the Ukraine-Russia conflict and repeatedly threatened to impose "secondary sanctions" or "very severe" tariffs and related tariffs on Russia.

Trump's sanctions mainly aim to hit Russia's energy trade, believing this will make Russia "feel the pain."

At the same time, Trump also revealed that after his meeting with Putin in Alaska, he might quickly hold a trilateral meeting involving Ukrainian leaders.

Notably, just before Trump issued his threat to Russia, he held a video conference with Zelenskyy and leaders of several European countries, reaching five principles for negotiations with Russia:

First, Ukraine must directly participate in the process of peacefully resolving the Ukraine-Russia conflict; Second, all matters related to Ukraine can only be discussed with Ukraine;

Third, preparations should begin for the U.S.-Ukraine-Russia trilateral meeting; Fourth, the conflict must stop, and clear security measures for Ukraine must be established; Fifth, if Russia does not agree to a ceasefire, the sanctions against it should be increased.

In fact, this can also be seen as Trump agreeing to Kyiv's five demands, which may have made many people feel that Putin was "tricked" by Trump.

Previously, Trump also mentioned that the Ukraine-Russia ceasefire agreement might involve "territory exchange," but Zelenskyy strongly opposed it, and at that time, Trump also criticized Zelenskyy.

However, after his online meeting with European leaders and Zelenskyy, his attitude seemed to shift significantly in support of Ukraine's core demands.

Moreover, he emphasized that during his meeting with Putin, no possible territorial division issues would be discussed. His ultimate goal in the meeting was to facilitate a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia.

But Trump's threat to Putin that if he does not agree to a ceasefire, more sanctions would be imposed on Russia, undoubtedly makes Russia very "angry."

However, although Trump's promise seems to be a strong support for Ukraine, given Trump's fickle nature, it is uncertain whether these consensus will be implemented. It all depends on how the U.S. and Russia actually negotiate.

Interestingly, behind the tough threats, Trump also prepared two "benefits" for Putin.

That day, the UK's Daily Telegraph also broke the news that Trump planned to propose to Putin during the Alaska meeting, allowing access to rare earth metals, intending to open up Alaska's natural resources to Moscow.

Additionally, he considered lifting some sanctions on the Russian aviation industry.

It is evident that this is another typical "carrot and stick" strategy from Trump, with a clear intention, trying to get Russia to make concessions on the Ukraine conflict through coercion and inducement.

However, Russia has a firm stance on issues concerning national sovereignty and core interests, and Trump's two proposals are not enough to impress Putin. The Russian side also emphasized that the goals of the Russian delegation during the Alaska meeting would completely depend on national interests.

In short, this U.S.-Russia summit is bound to be anything but simple. Whether Trump's "stick and carrot" strategy will work, how Putin will respond, and what sparks will emerge if the U.S.-Ukraine-Russia trilateral meeting is indeed held, we will have to wait and see.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7538269645779010091/

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