Attack on Sumy: is a Ukraine deal still realistic?
US President Donald Trump has described a Russian missile strike on the city of Sumy in north-eastern Ukraine in which more than 30 civilians were killed as a "horrible thing". Russian-American negotiations are set to continue this week, but with only a ceasefire on the Black Sea on the table. The media ask whether Trump's peace initiative has any chance of succeeding - and examine what role Europe can play.
A rejection of joint responsibility
La Stampa criticises the US's refusal to sign a G7 statement condemning the attack on Sumy:
“Washington wanted to 'leave room for negotiation' with Moscow. But you don't keep negotiations alive by pretending that there is no violence. And you certainly don't strengthen your position by withdrawing your solidarity with allies. If Trump thinks he is facilitating a compromise by not antagonising Putin, he has misunderstood the logic of autocracies. ... There is another implicit message that is just as serious: Trump's growing disinterest in multilateral formats, large or small. Refusing to make a joint statement on an important issue means rejecting the principle of shared responsibility.”
Trump needs to save face
Military analyst Oleksiy Kopytko comments in Unian:
“In two weeks' time, Trump will have been in office for 100 days. He's approaching this milestone on a very bad note, because he's effectively retreating in all areas that are important to him - except for the strengthening of the southern border. If he hasn't delivered any results by then, and Putin gets to hold a successful May 9 [Victory Day] parade, Trump will become a laughing stock. His superpower - aggressive bluffing - would be shown to be ineffective. ... For this reason I don't rule out the possibility that in the next few days there will be a (most likely non-public) concerted attempt to exert major pressure on Putin to achieve a symbolic de-escalation by early May.”
Russia not interested in a deal right now
Neatkarīgā looks at why Moscow is no longer interested in negotiations:
“The Kremlin wants to 'freeze' the situation at the point at which it is worst for Ukraine (US arms deliveries have been suspended) so that the Russian army can regroup, recover and focus on launching a major offensive once the ceasefire ends. As soon as it became known that the US was resuming intelligence and military support, with European countries stepping up their efforts and Japan also moving closer to the coalition, the Kremlin began to back away from its ceasefire rhetoric: even a one-month ceasefire would do little to further Putin's plans if Ukraine does not grow weaker in the meantime.”
Washington doesn't get Putin
Gazeta Wyborcza can't undestand why the US continues to give war criminal Putin the kid-gloves treatment:
“Putin is like a terrorist who breaks into an office, takes hostages and presents the world with his conditions. And when they're not met, he kills his prisoners one by one. Putin's hostages are the people of Ukraine, on whom he drops warheads in broad daylight. For similar war crimes during the Second World War, the Nuremberg trials sent German leaders to the gallows. Putin need not fear this; apparently he can go on murdering as long as the Americans fail to grasp what he is doing and continue to dance around him.”
Negotiating with corpses on the table
Putin's attack on Sumy is a deliberate provocation directed at the US and Europe, ABC concludes:
“Vladimir Putin is having civilians killed in Sumy, but his real objective is nothing other than to defy Washington, to show off vis-à-vis the US and to call into question any peace plan imposed on him by Trump. This Palm Sunday massacre is a warning signal to the US and above all to a Europe that is still debating the details of a future 'rearmament' in the face of the military withdrawal planned by the White House. ... Putin favours facts and puts the dead on the table.”
Trump needs to get the stick out
So far Putin has made a fool of the US president, writes the Kleine Zeitung:
“While Ukraine agreed to a 30-day ceasefire in March, even this period has now expired without the Kremlin leader giving in. ... The carrot alone has made little impression on the Russian leader. ... Now pressure is growing on Trump even among Republicans not to let Putin lead him by the nose. Trump himself is now considering imposing punitive tariffs of 25 to 50 percent on Russian oil unless it agrees to a ceasefire within a month. ... Military experts also bellieve it is possible that if Trump finally runs out of patience he could provide Ukraine not with fewer arms, but with significantly more.”
Temporary escalation suits Russia just fine
Pro-Kremlin radio station Kommersant FM outlines a scenario that would suit Putin and Trump but not Ukraine:
“There is no sign of peace right now. In fact, the exact opposite is the case - an escalation that leads to mutual resentment. ... For the most part Russia is in favour of this option. It's clearly counting on military victories to take over the entire Donbass. ... And then the issue will resolve itself and it can agree to a ceasefire promoted by Donald Trump. If this happens relatively quickly, the latter would be able to boast of a great success, because then peace would have somehow been restored.”
Europe can and must take action
It's not too late for Europe to act, writes Paolo Mieli, former chief editor of Corriere della Sera:
“Zelensky is not taking any notice of those who suggest that he accept an 'unjust peace', naturally for his own good. He is resisting, for himself and for his people. But also to give Europe time to arm itself properly and react to Putin's new improvisations. ... We are convinced that Europe, finally reunited with Britain, will do its duty and take the right countermeasures from now on - in view of the prospect that the unreliability (or worse) of the US will continue on the Western front. And in the certainty that this front will hold, despite Trump's madness.”
Words must be followed by deeds
Following Friedrich Merz's confirmation that he is in favour of supplying German Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine also as Chancellor, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung comments:
“More important than a single weapon system - however helpful it may be - is to keep supplying the Ukrainian armed forces with everything they need to resist the invaders. The prospects of peace with Vladimir Putin's regime are slim anyway. But only if the Kremlin feels pressure is there any chance of persuading him to enter into serious negotiations. It would be fatal, however, if Merz's announcement were not followed by action. Putin would see this as encouragement.”