"Peace is something which maybe only the author of the book knows how to broker. As many said after the election, Trump may not be a perfect man, but he is THE perfect man for America right now. Let's hope and pray that Trump can pull a rabbit out of his hat in Alaska. All eyes will be on Alaska next week."
The above picture is Mount McKinley (Denali). I took that pic eleven years ago while in Alaska. This mountain is so big, so massive, you can see it from a long, long ways away. To see it, literally takes your breath away.
I chose this picture for this article as what might happen in Alaska next Friday (August 15th), could be equally as majestic. The long-awaited meeting between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump. No Zelenskyy, no EU members - only Trump and Putin. It is a meeting searching for peace for a nation being destroyed by war. The stakes could not be higher.
I am not here to pay any homage to Putin or his Russian henchmen. They started this war under false pretenses. For targeting civilians, they could all be war criminals. Hundreds of thousands of Russians and Ukrainians have lost their lives. Lost homes. Lost livelihoods. We all know what Putin wants - he wants Ukraine to come under his orbit, once again. Donald Trump wants what most of the world wants - and end to this carnage. This senseless killing, of mostly young men, and the destruction of a country.
The negotiations for a cease fire will be dicey. Zelenskyy wanted to join, but Putin wants only Trump in the meeting. Zelenskyy does not want to give up an inch of occupied territory; Putin wants a chunk of Ukraine as a war prize. It is up to Donald Trump and his team to stich up the huge chasm between the two positions. Is it possible to walk out of this Alaska meeting with nothing? More than possible - probable. But as the song goes, "All we are asking, is give peace a chance." That's it - can we at least come out of this meeting with a meaningful cease fire? One which is not just smoke and mirrors?
This ugly war in Ukraine has already redefined Europe. It has strengthened and enlarged NATO. It has caused nations to fortify borders. It has reduced Russia's army by thousands of armored vehicles and hundreds of thousands of troops. It has taken the breadbasket (Ukraine) of Europe and laid waste to much of it. Europe may never be the same again. Both in geography as well as trust.
As many gambles as Trump has been involved in during his civilian life, I dare say this one could be his most difficult. The stakes could not be higher. Why? Even though we tend to forget this from time to time, Russia has thousands of nukes. At any time, this conflict could go from hot to a global inferno.
Peace is something which maybe only the author of the book knows how to broker. As many said after the election, Trump may not be a perfect man, but he is THE perfect man for America right now. Let's hope and pray that Trump can pull a rabbit out of his hat in Alaska. All eyes will be on Alaska next week.
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