Poor Ukraine. I watched with both terror and amusement as Russian President Vladimir Putin and United States President Donald Trump met last week in Anchorage, Alaska, to purportedly bring an end to the Ukrainian/Russian conflict. My dual emotions were stirred for several reasons. First, President Volodymyr Zelensky’s Ukraine was not represented at the table. Second, a war criminal, Putin, was allowed to leave Mother Russia unprosecuted.

And lastly, that a Russian president who has talked so disparagingly about the U.S. was allowed entrance into the home country’s secure military facility. Those same emotions flooded back to me as I watched Zelensky and other European leaders genuflect and kiss the ring of the almighty Trump, all in the name of trying to maintain some dignity for Ukraine. It makes me sick just thinking about it.

What’s Really Going on with the Ukraine Talks?

As the old-worn saying goes, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different outcome.” That sums up Europe’s expectations of a fair and equitable settlement of the Ukraine/Russian conflict.

When Trump left a shortened Anchorage meeting last week, Putin had convinced him that a ceasefire was unnecessary and that a final cessation of the conflict (land grab) should be the next step. As he met with Zelensky and other European leaders on Monday, the U.S. president appeared to have softened his stance a bit.

And what a meeting it was. French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, President of the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte all accompanied Zelensky to the Oval Office to pay homage to the great Trump. They showered the U.S. president with praise, knowing Trump’s adoration for such a display, even though it was faint praise.

All of this despite the fact that Trump, at one point in a moment of confusion, couldn’t identify the Finnish president who was sitting directly across from him. And what appeared to be lost in all this glad-handing is that there were no solid agreements on the stickier points of the negotiations.

Except for a promise by Trump to call for a third summit meeting between himself, Zelensky, and Putin. What was more telling was that shortly after the meeting, he called his friends, Putin and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, perhaps to talk about the slicing up of Ukraine.

What are the Real Facts?

The real facts of the situation remain unchanged despite Monday’s White House love fest. The fact remains that Putin will never agree to any resolution of the conflict without Ukraine ceding significant portions of its country to Russia. The deal will almost certainly include Crimea, which Russia illegally seized in 2014, and the Donbas region of Eastern Ukraine. And the Russian president has been adamant about not having a peacekeeping force in Ukraine after hostilities cease.

Furthermore, the security guarantee that Zelensky has prioritized regarding no future Russian invasion of Ukraine is still a subject of great debate. Putin seeks a re-forming of the Soviet Union, and all of these proposals run counter to that. And an undeniable fact is Trump’s fondness for Putin, which is spurred by his adoration of all authoritarian leaders.

Couple that with the sweetheart land deals that the U.S. president is seeking to enhance his post-Oval Office wealth, and his fascination with being a Nobel Peace Prize recipient, and you have all the ingredients of a Russia-dominated settlement in Ukraine.

Are There Any Alternatives?

Perhaps Mr. Trump will play hardball with Putin and insist on security guarantees for Ukraine. And maybe, the Russian leader will relent and agree to an international peacekeeping force that would help soothe the nerves of Zelensky and his government. But I keep going back to the saying I referred to at the beginning of this article and predict that when the smoke settles, Putin and Russia will be the big winners with Trump snarfing up some crumbs.

Ukraine will have to live with a large Russian presence even closer to Kyiv and the foreboding feeling of knowing that it’s not if there is another Russian invasion, but when. And the Europeans? You can go back to sleep now. You are no match for Putin and his American puppet.