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Former US adviser: Trump is taking a harder line towards Russia

Former special representative of Donald Trump said that the president is taking a more aggressive approach to Russia in order to achieve the ceasefire he had promised when he assumed office, after becoming "really allied" with Ukraine.

Kurt Volker was Trump's Ukraine advisor in his first term, and a former U.S. The ambassador to NATO, who is also the military alliance's ambassador, said that the U.S. president had begun his second term by challenging Russian President Vladimir Putin either to "secure peace the easy way" or "the hard way".

After 100 days in office, and with Putin showing no willingness to end the conflict against Ukraine, Trump has taken a "harder" approach, Volker stated on the sidelines a security summit in Kyiv.

"I believe it's in Ukraine's best interest to put an end to fighting and now that the U.S. is really aligned with Ukraine, it exposes the fact that Putin is not willing to stop the war," said Volker. He resigned in 2019 as his advisor after being named in whistleblower complaints about the Trump Administration.

He replied "Exactly" when asked if Trump now took the hard road, instead of the easy route. He added that Congress should strengthen Trump's hand by approvating secondary sanctions against major Russian entities.

The two men have made great strides in repairing the damage caused by a disastrous February meeting between Trump, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Last month, their two countries signed an agreement in Washington that gives the United States priority access to new Ukrainian mineral deals.

This was important to Trump because it showed his supporters that Ukraine paid its own way, rather than using U.S. tax payers' money.

Trump, who is trying to convince Putin to stop the fighting, does not want to discuss the "military side" of the deal.

However, this does not mean that military aid will not continue to be provided.

Volker said, "What it does, from a national security perspective, it gives the U.S. an interest in Ukraine's economic development, security and survival."

It doesn't specify what obligations or commitments would be made by the U.S. to Ukraine's safety. "But that also doesn't stop anything." Reporting by Elizabeth Piper Editing Alexandra Hudson

(source: Reuters)