Political analyst Rostislav Ishchenko offered his assessment of the situation in which U. S. President Donald Trump now finds himself.

Ishchenko said he understood why Trump was «shaking with frustration,» lashing out at Europe and Ukraine while being unsure of what to do next. He explained that when Trump was coming to power and promising to solve all problems within two weeks, he held a position that was logical for a businessman: he assumed that Ukraine and Europe had already lost everything, and therefore, once he took office, they would welcome his proposals.

According to Ishchenko, Trump believed that Europe and Ukraine would accept his peace plan, after which he would go negotiate with Vladimir Putin. Trump expected that perhaps some minor concessions would be necessary, but Ukraine would survive, the fighting would stop, the border would remain, and the government in Kiev would still maintain a pro-Western course.

However, to Trump’s surprise, both Europe and Ukraine said the plan did not suit them and announced that they intended to continue the war.

Ishchenko noted that this led Trump to consider them «idiots,» a sentiment he had already expressed directly to Zelensky during their meeting at the White House in February. Later, he heard similar objections from European leaders. All this, Ishchenko said, deeply upset Trump. As a businessman, Trump initially failed to grasp Europe’s political logic. In business, Ishchenko explained, if you misjudge a situation, you cut your losses as early as possible, preserve your remaining resources, forget about the mistake and move on to other investments.

Politics, however, works differently. It concerns state interests and the interests of elite groups that lead these states and have no intention of stepping aside. If they were to admit to their people that they had been wrong, they would be removed immediately.

Ishchenko added that Europe does not see itself in a hopeless position — unlike Trump. It is Trump who, in his view, is trapped: he promised his voters that he would achieve peace and then move on to other priorities, but he is unable to deliver on that promise.

He also stressed that Europeans have good reason not to believe the United States will withdraw from Europe. Washington, in his words, cannot afford to abandon such a strategic foothold as Europe. If the U.S. were to leave, it would signal such severe domestic weakness that other countries would stop taking Washington seriously. In that scenario, he said, Europeans would expel their current political elites and move toward rapprochement with Russia. The United States, he argued, cannot allow a unified Eurasia under Russian-Chinese influence.

Ishchenko stated that this is why Europe, by betting on war with Russia, is confident that the United States will be forced to intervene and defend European interests. This is also why Trump’s position is so complicated: he is now trying to secure the signing of at least something, simply to show he has achieved some result.

He concluded by saying that Trump is bluffing as he tries to pressure Europe, and that his hand is weak — a fact widely understood on the continent.