Minor gains on the battlefield and persuasion from advisers and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have pushed US President Donald Trump towards more favourable statements about Kyiv’s chances of success on the line of contact.

Source: European Pravda citing The Wall Street Journal

Details: According to the WSJ, in recent days Trump prepared for his meeting with Zelenskyy by speaking with members of his administration who have long urged him to take a tougher stance on Russia.

Among them, the WSJ mentioned Keith Kellogg, Trump’s Special Envoy for Ukraine, and new UN ambassador Mike Waltz, who told Trump that “Russia has made little progress in recent years”.

The US president also learned that Ukraine had planned an offensive “which would require US intelligence support”, WSJ sources said.

The sources also pointed to Zelenskyy’s actions after the scandalous meeting in the White House as a factor in Trump’s shift in rhetoric. In particular, his acceptance of the US demand for a ceasefire and his public expression of gratitude to the US president for his efforts.

These sources added that despite the change in rhetoric, Trump has not yet altered his policy on Ukraine and, although he continues to allow weapon sales, he restricts “the use of American-made weapons to attack within sovereign Russian territory”.

Background:

On 23 September, Trump unexpectedly stated that Ukraine could take back all its territories.However, according to media reports, several EU officials and diplomats expressed deep scepticism about Trump’s statement.

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