WASHINGTON, October 17. /TASS/. A conversation between the presidents of Russia and the United States, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, may at least prevent the delivery of US-made Tomahawk cruise missiles to Ukraine, US Notre Dame International Security Center Director Michael Desch told TASS.
"I hope that this call has the positive results that President Trump suggests. At a minimum, it may forestall his sending Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine, a dangerous escalation," he said.
"But more ambitiously, it would be great if this stopped the fighting and set the stage for a negotiated settlement to this bloody and increasingly futile war. Still, such moments of hope have been dashed before," the expert added.
Meanwhile, James Carden, a retired diplomat and former advisor to the US side of the US-Russia Bilateral Presidential Commission, suggested in a conversation with a TASS correspondent that new agreements between Putin and Trump, reached during Thursday’s conversation, may be rendered meaningless by the forthcoming meeting between Vladimir Zelensky and Trump. In his opinion, Trump will possibly authorize Tomahawk deliveries to Kiev and will likely cave to "other requests."
Agreements between presidents
Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov confirmed that Moscow and Washington would "without delay" begin preparations for the meeting, which may be held in Budapest. He described this as "a truly significant moment." Preparations will start in the next few days, with a phone conversation between US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
On Friday, Trump plans to receive Vladimir Zelensky in the White house. Earlier, the US leader said that Zelensky would ask him to authorize Tomahawk deliveries to his country.
Zelensky has repeatedly asked the US to increase supplies of missiles for Patriot systems and to transfer Tomahawk missiles to Kiev. The US president has stated that before making a final decision on Tomahawk missiles, he should most likely discuss it with the Russian president. On October 6, Trump announced that he had in fact made a decision on the possibility of transferring these missiles to the Ukrainian side, but did not explain what it entailed.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Tomahawk missiles "cannot be used" without the direct involvement of US military personnel, warning that this would mark "a qualitatively new phase of escalation, including in relations between Russia and the United States." Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted that Russia would respond "accordingly" if Tomahawk missiles are supplied to Kiev.