This is a strong piece. What Snyder captures is the deliberate substitution of unreality for reality, a tactic I know well from my own years in diplomacy.
Russian statecraft has always thrived on erasing facts, reframing aggression as grievance, and turning capitulation into “peace.” The so‑called plan is not diplomacy, it is profiteering dressed up as negotiation, imperialism disguised as compromise.
As a former diplomat, I can tell you that the danger is not just in the document itself but in the process. When American policy is defined by Russian unreality, allies are forced to act as a check on Washington rather than Washington defending law and reality. That inversion is catastrophic. Incentives matter: reward aggression and you will get more aggression, punish the victim and you weaken the very system you claim to uphold.
Snyder is right. This is not a peace plan. It is a capitulation document written by the aggressor, served to the victim, and endorsed by Americans who see profit in unreality. Diplomacy that begins from lies does not end in peace.
This so-called ceasefire agreement, as I read it previously, is a very bad joke. I became extremely angry that a totally unqualified person such as Witkoff, thinks he can even negotiate with a ruthless murderer. Basically, what was written is that Russia gets everything and Ukraine gets nothing. There will be no peace for Ukraine until or unless, we are able to get rid of this regime and it’s obvious demented leader.
It makes obvious to the world that, as far as Ukraine is concerned, Putin holds the cards. Witkoff, Kushner, and Rubio look like facilitators, not defenders of Ukraine in any way. It's embarrassing and dispiriting.
Principles, integrity and honor are dead. Dehumanization, disdain for rights, the evisceration of statecraft, the destruction of the potency for a safe and sane social order and civilized beliefs have been ascending. Led by a man who is mentally incompetent, evil and disturbed - trump; partnered with a man who is a psychopathic assassin, pedaling extreme and aggressive ideologies and who has the potential to leave an indelible imprint of terror and destruction.....
fwiw, "Principles, integrity and honor" are not dead; they're just absent from too many people in positions of power, particularly in the maga-fied US.
What followed in my comment would suggest that I was referring to this current administration. I don't think it is absent nationwide in every social or economic entity.
... furthermore, nothing is demanded of Russia, everything is demanded of Ukraine. Russia will be rewarded for war crimes, while Ukraine will be punished for ????
Yes, why was Prince Andrew’s wife Sarah Ferguson associated with Epstein?
I read an article about several scientists mentioned in the files. It appears that Epstein was offering to fund projects.
Epstein had a tremendous amount of money. He was not born rich, he was a high school teacher. I’ve never seen an explanation for where all the money came from.
Sure some men paid. But surely not the amount he had.
FK, Epstein was very cunning and clever. He made his money by hobnobbing with the elite. How? More than likely he was a paid agent for many countries because when the FBI went to his home, they found quite a number of passports in his name from all around the world. He probably claimed citizenship somehow, again through his rich buddies who he rewarded with young girls to violate. They, in turn, paid him handsomely for his efforts. That is conjecture, not fact as it hasn’t been definitely established yet.
The person chosen to meet Russian, Ukraine, and EU counterparts in Geneva is even worse. He’s not even 40, his background is investment banking in Charlotte, NC and selected by JD Vance because they met at Yale!! No other knowledge. Perfect stooge to represent Putin’s stooge in the White House.
Not exactly a new idea in international relations. Many nations, including the U.S., have tried to use their diplomatic weight to advantage for themselves and their allies. The new point, I think, is that the U.S. will use its diplomatic weight to further the desires of Putin.
It wasn't Rubio who appointed Dumpkof; it wasn't Rubio who replaced Kellog with Driscoll - it was Trump. Rubio is a wallflower in this administration which is why he was saddled with four jobs.
Believe me when I say I would if I could. He's been bad since his first day in the Senate (not to mention his days in the Florida legislature.) Remember when he said he would quit the Senate after his first term? He never showed up to do even that job. Then when he saw he'd lost the primary to be the GOP Presidential candidate he went back on his word & re-ran for his Senate job - promising to be a check on thump (which he didn't do either.)
"The Road to Unfreedom" is Timothy Snyder's most vital book on why Russia lies.
Also most vital explaining that the lies come for the reason Mother Rus is both the most virtuous country on Earth as well as the most misunderstood, victimized, and underappreciated. Lies necessarily cover for these disadvantages.
"The Road to Unfreedom" also better than any other work explains why and how Putin hates the West -- and chafes only to destroy all its democracies. Starting -- sine qua non -- with Ukraine.
For a real eye-opener, read Tim's "Bloodlands." I *thought* I knew about the Holocaust and the starving of peasants by Stalin until I read it. I had no idea.
“While everything is demanded of Ukraine, nothing is asked of Russia. This is a capitulation document written by the aggressor and served to the victim, at a time when the aggressor is not doing well on the battlefield.”
This so called deal is like the Doha Agreement on steroids. It’s a surrender agreement and is the definition of appeasement, and as Winston Churchill famously said to Chamberlain:
“You were given the choice between war and dishonor. You chose dishonor, and you will have war"
This truly is a catastrophe for US diplomacy. And this plan came from Vance and the Tech Bro’s without any forethought of the consequences. Or maybe that was the point, since this appears to be a classic Russian active measure operation.
Furthermore, the architects of the deal: Musk, Vance and Thiel had to have known it would be leaked. After all, they should have calculated that the Ukrainian’s or European’s would definitely leak it, so there was no chance they should have thought that the plan could stay under the radar for long.
Therefore, these people are either complete idiots, or they are actively undermining the National Security interests of the US for their own personal gain; which would make them traitors! Or worse, they’re both!
Additionally, even the WSJ’s opinion page called this a surrender agreement. And this dishonor will definitely bring about war, as well as a whole host of other problems.
On the bright side, at least one thing is clear; Vance will never be president unless Trump suddenly dies in office. He has proven himself to be a joke; humorless and lacking even an inkling of charisma. There is no coming back from a disaster such as this. I’ll rephrase; for most people.
Bottom line, it appears the weaknesses in the armor of this administration is becoming apparent for anyone willing to look under the hood; it’s completely vacant.
This is the administration in a nutshell, and in many ways comparable to the Wizard of Oz; it’s all an illusion, and it is destroying every economic and security alliance we built over the last 80 years; to the detriment of the future health and wealth of this nation. IMHO..:)
Steve Witless seems to have believed the "draft" was leaked not by Ukrainians or Europeans, but by his Russian interlocutor Kirill Dmitriev to Axios - this is the interpretation put on his hastily-deleted X message "He must have got this from K".
This is outrageous and absurd. Donald suffers from multiple mental and physical disorders. He’s not fit. He sent a fellow “builder” Witcoff to Russia to talk to Putin. He did not bring a translator and used Putins guy. This is a shameful document and a manipulative attempt to “please Putin” by Trump. Really upset.
What can we do as Americans in support of Ukraine now. Thank you again for your expertise and explanation.
Thank you for dissecting this so-called "peace plan".
Here's my plan.
1/ Jail, trial and imprison Putin.
2/ Russia's butcher soldiers are to get out of Ukraine, including the Crimea. Those who murdered, raped and ransacked will be trialed as war criminals.
Marc, what do you think is the likelihood that the EU will make a quick decision on the frozen Russian assets which it holds? Do you think that Point 14 of this Noxious Document might spur some action? It's laughable to think that handing over money in European banks to American and Russians profiteers could be discussed seriously.
Hi Karen. As you probably know a large portion of the money confiscated from the Russian national bank sits at Euroclear in Brussels, roughly B185€.
Unfortunately we currently have a rightwing PM (De Wever) who does not want to use that cash because he's "afraid" of Russian legal actions. De Wever is looking for support in the EU to keep that money blocked and do nothing with it. Plus I do not see a quick decision because of the actions of De Wever and because the EU has to decide unanimously.... you have this Hungarian chap who is in love with Putin.... Orban.... who'll gladly block anything.
As you point out that point 14 is more then ridiculous.
Reads like two schoolyard bullies who plan to destroy something and than count on sharing the "profits" 50/50 from rebuilding. On top of that the two schoolyard bullies expect the EU to throw in an extra bag of cash.....
The guy (always a guy) who thought this up must have been very drunk while he was consuming way to many magic mushrooms.
You have to wonder how much of this was already set in stone during that shameful invitation by our Sucker-in-Chief to the child-murderer in the Kremlin back in August to step on Alaskan land (since he would have been arrested on the spot had he stepped in any European country). A speedy response by 8 European heads of state (all experienced in child-minding) may have prevented this back then. Yet here we are again.
The most absurd point in this absurd 'peace plan' --- slapped on after the fact -- is Trump's bizarre insistence that Zelenskyy wave a wand and get this all done by American Thanksgiving. Ukraine is a constitutional republic whose Rada (Parliament) must finally approve any peace plan. The chances of this happening in 3 days are less than zero. Lev Parnas speculates this date is Putin's fear that whatever further awfulness is in the 'Epstein Files' it will bring Russian dealings with Trump and others into scrutiny, so he wants to do this before that happens.
As with Manafort earlier, this is Putin barking orders while Witkof nods his head, going 'as Your Grace pleases.'
Dear Dr. Snyder. Thank for your dissection of the capitulation plan. Sadly, another example of Putin's dominance of Trump and the Trump administration. How disgraceful and terrifying.
Professor Snyder, I had to seek help from the internet to find words that describe this piece because it is now obvious to me that you function at a level well beyond "brilliant." So here goes: divine, transcendent, sublime, dazzling, awe-inspiring, preternatural.
May your insights and inspirational writings continue for many more years.
This is not a “peace treaty” a “28-point” and beyond wish list from Putin- Russia it’s an abomination. And what’s even worse is that thing in the Oval had the audacity to use his social media platform to once again belittle and browbeat Zelenskyy and Ukraine as such ..“UKRAINE ‘LEADERSHIP’ HAS EXPRESSED ZERO GRATITUDE FOR OUR EFFORTS, AND EUROPE CONTINUES TO BUY OIL FROM RUSSIA. THE USA CONTINUES TO SELL MASSIVE $AMOUNTS OF WEAPONS TO NATO, FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UKRAINE (CROOKED JOE GAVE EVERYTHING, FREE, FREE, FREE, INCLUDING “BIG” MONEY!). GOD BLESS ALL THE LIVES THAT HAVE BEEN LOST IN THE HUMAN CATASTROPHE! President DJT”
This is beyond nauseating, the bile just churns in an explosion of words that even a sailor would blush..
The thing in the White House also smirked that if President Zelenskyy didn’t "sign", he could "go on fighting his little heart out."
May the curse of Mary Malone chase him so far over the hills of damnation that the Lord himself couldn't find him with a telescope." (Traditional, Ireland)
As I have mentioned previously, the best and quickest way to end this war is for Ukraine to WIN the war. Competent US leadership months ago would have initiated a program to provide Ukraine with all the war materiel needed by Ukraine to drive Russian forces from Ukraine territory. Targeting restrictions imposed on Ukraine drones/missiles should be removed. Consider how much better the current situation would be if we had implemented this program 8 or 9 months ago instead of Trump's kowtowing to Putin.
This is not a “peace” treaty. It’s a “pause in the war” treaty designed to backtrack Ukraine to a weaker place and allow Russia to regain its strength so it can that fulfill its stated objective to destroy Ukraine as a nation (because Putin believes the existence of Ukraine is a fiction perpetrated upon him… a grievance of historic magnitudes).
I feel compelled to tell people unfamiliar with this fact that Werner Erhard (creator of the “you create your own reality through the words you think and say” est Training in the late 1960s) conducted training programs for various Russian scientific and cultural organizations starting in 1979. Erhard may have thought he was doing something that would help Russians escape their authoritarian past (this is just a guess, based on what Erhard wrote in 1990, link below), but I think Russia’s mastery of “the world is the way we say it is” language on display in what they (and Trump) call a “peace plan” … even though it is no such thing … demonstrates what they did with Erhard’s teachings. The link below verifies that these teaching programs existed…. that I’m not making this up. I consider the fact that Erhard taught this incredibly powerful psychological “mind control” skill set to top people in Russia (maybe even Putin himself?) to be a very underreported part of global authoritarian history.
It is a recipe for extortion. Extortion from Americans, Ukrainians and Europeans all who will pay the price. What does the Aggressor have on a President to demand such punishment of people and blatant humiliation of him. What does the Aggressor have on a President to demand that sovereign nations agree to the appropriation of their power and considerable resources rather than use their strength to marshal freedom of a sovereign nation Ukraine and thus of all people.
Thank you Dr Snyder for the transparency and translation of this document. Your work is deeply appreciated.
This is a strong piece. What Snyder captures is the deliberate substitution of unreality for reality, a tactic I know well from my own years in diplomacy.
Russian statecraft has always thrived on erasing facts, reframing aggression as grievance, and turning capitulation into “peace.” The so‑called plan is not diplomacy, it is profiteering dressed up as negotiation, imperialism disguised as compromise.
As a former diplomat, I can tell you that the danger is not just in the document itself but in the process. When American policy is defined by Russian unreality, allies are forced to act as a check on Washington rather than Washington defending law and reality. That inversion is catastrophic. Incentives matter: reward aggression and you will get more aggression, punish the victim and you weaken the very system you claim to uphold.
Snyder is right. This is not a peace plan. It is a capitulation document written by the aggressor, served to the victim, and endorsed by Americans who see profit in unreality. Diplomacy that begins from lies does not end in peace.
It ends in disaster.
—Johan
Reminds me of Israel's talking points regarding Gaza and the West Bank.
This so-called ceasefire agreement, as I read it previously, is a very bad joke. I became extremely angry that a totally unqualified person such as Witkoff, thinks he can even negotiate with a ruthless murderer. Basically, what was written is that Russia gets everything and Ukraine gets nothing. There will be no peace for Ukraine until or unless, we are able to get rid of this regime and it’s obvious demented leader.
It makes obvious to the world that, as far as Ukraine is concerned, Putin holds the cards. Witkoff, Kushner, and Rubio look like facilitators, not defenders of Ukraine in any way. It's embarrassing and dispiriting.
Principles, integrity and honor are dead. Dehumanization, disdain for rights, the evisceration of statecraft, the destruction of the potency for a safe and sane social order and civilized beliefs have been ascending. Led by a man who is mentally incompetent, evil and disturbed - trump; partnered with a man who is a psychopathic assassin, pedaling extreme and aggressive ideologies and who has the potential to leave an indelible imprint of terror and destruction.....
fwiw, "Principles, integrity and honor" are not dead; they're just absent from too many people in positions of power, particularly in the maga-fied US.
What followed in my comment would suggest that I was referring to this current administration. I don't think it is absent nationwide in every social or economic entity.
agree with you - just trying always to buck up my own spirits & those of us other skimmers :)
... furthermore, nothing is demanded of Russia, everything is demanded of Ukraine. Russia will be rewarded for war crimes, while Ukraine will be punished for ????
it's the maga way - power is all that matters
and sad to say Trump is just the figurehead -- the lienholders, foreign and domestic, who installed this regime are the real dangers.
Who funded Vance's rise? Who donated more than any other individual to this regime?
Technofascists, christofascists, and plain old ordinary fascists are the folks really running things, and they aren't going away.
Yes, and of course, you’re right. I want to point out that Peter Thiel is mentioned in the Epstein files. Interesting, no?
Yep. He's also JD Vance's "mentor" -- have read Vance wouldn't be in any political office if it weren't for Thiel's millions
Correct! Perhaps JD is Thiel’s boy-toy.
actually vomit emoji but who needs to look at that ;)
Peter Thiel is openly gay. I wouldn’t have thought he’d be interested in Epstein.
Thiel and Epstein could have very much been “into” each other. Epstein had connections but then Thiel also had his.
Yes, why was Prince Andrew’s wife Sarah Ferguson associated with Epstein?
I read an article about several scientists mentioned in the files. It appears that Epstein was offering to fund projects.
Epstein had a tremendous amount of money. He was not born rich, he was a high school teacher. I’ve never seen an explanation for where all the money came from.
Sure some men paid. But surely not the amount he had.
FK, Epstein was very cunning and clever. He made his money by hobnobbing with the elite. How? More than likely he was a paid agent for many countries because when the FBI went to his home, they found quite a number of passports in his name from all around the world. He probably claimed citizenship somehow, again through his rich buddies who he rewarded with young girls to violate. They, in turn, paid him handsomely for his efforts. That is conjecture, not fact as it hasn’t been definitely established yet.
Marco Rubio has once again proven that he is not the proverbial 'adult in the room'. He should be deeply ashamed.
The person chosen to meet Russian, Ukraine, and EU counterparts in Geneva is even worse. He’s not even 40, his background is investment banking in Charlotte, NC and selected by JD Vance because they met at Yale!! No other knowledge. Perfect stooge to represent Putin’s stooge in the White House.
By the way, his name is Dan Driscoll. No foreign diplomatic experience at all. Never held a government position. The US is a disgrace.
Yes... in this long and excellent essay, this one line really jumped out at me:
What is perhaps most meaningful is the idea, new to international relations, that the United States is a kind of gangster entity....
Not exactly a new idea in international relations. Many nations, including the U.S., have tried to use their diplomatic weight to advantage for themselves and their allies. The new point, I think, is that the U.S. will use its diplomatic weight to further the desires of Putin.
Check out Gangsters of Capitalism by Jonathan M. Katz . :
https://www.amazon.com/Gangsters-Capitalism-Smedley-Breaking-Americas/dp/1250135591/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2SKDQDRXUT1O2&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.VZxKuGq4BNCRGwgAHVdqZGy6b9Fa-GudL69kDpovVmXv1G8tnykzn4IARR4XUr4r2JV6heBEOrxu6TiZ-MhilTQcQfboHFvWZF_WUH1WtwoZdjF-HoPuiSXQCsqB5G5JlR5KpA1LD79Uz8koJLDDryE9uTnv5tAmIlYl49Pp803NX4WEkdzmKpNhCmXypBYfj4bk3xiPgdRlqZB2IjeNTjY903x22Dnw87LJdkvc8XE.S9nauHYDP_wHxZ7ndytXNqo9-H-UJ6sc5cymYRNGHpQ&dib_tag=se&keywords=gangsters&qid=1764247707&s=books&sprefix=gangsters%2Cstripbooks%2C171&sr=1-1
terrific details about all this in:
https://snyder.substack.com/p/oligarchs-and-diplomats-video-with
Just saw the video with Michael from the Insider. What an eye opener.
It wasn't Rubio who appointed Dumpkof; it wasn't Rubio who replaced Kellog with Driscoll - it was Trump. Rubio is a wallflower in this administration which is why he was saddled with four jobs.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/marco-rubio-trump-white-house-jobs-b2743863.html
Over and over again, Trump has set deadlines for the Russians and they have blown through every one of them.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/russia-ukraine-trump-putin-ceasefire-deadline-peace-talks-b2804126.html
Rubio is a puppet of the Floridian (Cuban) GOP (& its donors)
Well then this marionette needs restringing.
Believe me when I say I would if I could. He's been bad since his first day in the Senate (not to mention his days in the Florida legislature.) Remember when he said he would quit the Senate after his first term? He never showed up to do even that job. Then when he saw he'd lost the primary to be the GOP Presidential candidate he went back on his word & re-ran for his Senate job - promising to be a check on thump (which he didn't do either.)
Rubio willingly put himself in this position. If he really objected he could quit.
Rubio has never had any spine. He is the puppet of the Floridian (Cuban) GOP machine.
"The Road to Unfreedom" is Timothy Snyder's most vital book on why Russia lies.
Also most vital explaining that the lies come for the reason Mother Rus is both the most virtuous country on Earth as well as the most misunderstood, victimized, and underappreciated. Lies necessarily cover for these disadvantages.
"The Road to Unfreedom" also better than any other work explains why and how Putin hates the West -- and chafes only to destroy all its democracies. Starting -- sine qua non -- with Ukraine.
For a real eye-opener, read Tim's "Bloodlands." I *thought* I knew about the Holocaust and the starving of peasants by Stalin until I read it. I had no idea.
Agreed, Tom. Another great book by him on a most horrifying history.
Must read it again. Got it when it first came out. The problem is, how many Americans even know about Timothy Snyder?
That's why our "educated" need to quote good things more. Refer to them more.
Phil Balla,
Thanks to 3 free gifts I was able to add 3 highly intelligent people including one who was a great diplomat.
Tim Snyder is invaluable to me, as this post shows exactly WHY in his analysis of each part of what I broadly call the ridiculous treaty.
Yes, one of the truly great minds speaking out on what we are facing.
Correct. And they can't reside in ivory towers, but expand their presence in multiple sources outside their substack.
“While everything is demanded of Ukraine, nothing is asked of Russia. This is a capitulation document written by the aggressor and served to the victim, at a time when the aggressor is not doing well on the battlefield.”
This so called deal is like the Doha Agreement on steroids. It’s a surrender agreement and is the definition of appeasement, and as Winston Churchill famously said to Chamberlain:
“You were given the choice between war and dishonor. You chose dishonor, and you will have war"
This truly is a catastrophe for US diplomacy. And this plan came from Vance and the Tech Bro’s without any forethought of the consequences. Or maybe that was the point, since this appears to be a classic Russian active measure operation.
Furthermore, the architects of the deal: Musk, Vance and Thiel had to have known it would be leaked. After all, they should have calculated that the Ukrainian’s or European’s would definitely leak it, so there was no chance they should have thought that the plan could stay under the radar for long.
Therefore, these people are either complete idiots, or they are actively undermining the National Security interests of the US for their own personal gain; which would make them traitors! Or worse, they’re both!
Additionally, even the WSJ’s opinion page called this a surrender agreement. And this dishonor will definitely bring about war, as well as a whole host of other problems.
On the bright side, at least one thing is clear; Vance will never be president unless Trump suddenly dies in office. He has proven himself to be a joke; humorless and lacking even an inkling of charisma. There is no coming back from a disaster such as this. I’ll rephrase; for most people.
Bottom line, it appears the weaknesses in the armor of this administration is becoming apparent for anyone willing to look under the hood; it’s completely vacant.
This is the administration in a nutshell, and in many ways comparable to the Wizard of Oz; it’s all an illusion, and it is destroying every economic and security alliance we built over the last 80 years; to the detriment of the future health and wealth of this nation. IMHO..:)
Steve Witless seems to have believed the "draft" was leaked not by Ukrainians or Europeans, but by his Russian interlocutor Kirill Dmitriev to Axios - this is the interpretation put on his hastily-deleted X message "He must have got this from K".
I don't know about succession. The Richest Man in the World and a couple of runner-ups prefer Vance.
True, and Vance’s and the tech bro’s fingerprints are all over this debacle of a plan…:)
This is outrageous and absurd. Donald suffers from multiple mental and physical disorders. He’s not fit. He sent a fellow “builder” Witcoff to Russia to talk to Putin. He did not bring a translator and used Putins guy. This is a shameful document and a manipulative attempt to “please Putin” by Trump. Really upset.
What can we do as Americans in support of Ukraine now. Thank you again for your expertise and explanation.
The only thing that Witless has brought back from those meetings is an absurdly flattering portrait of Trump by a Russian artist.
https://edition.cnn.com/2025/04/22/style/russian-artist-trump-portrait-putin-intl
Barf.
I send a monthly donation to United 24 for defense. It’s not much but it’s what I can do.
Thank you for dissecting this so-called "peace plan".
Here's my plan.
1/ Jail, trial and imprison Putin.
2/ Russia's butcher soldiers are to get out of Ukraine, including the Crimea. Those who murdered, raped and ransacked will be trialed as war criminals.
3/ Russia pays for all the damages.
Marc, what do you think is the likelihood that the EU will make a quick decision on the frozen Russian assets which it holds? Do you think that Point 14 of this Noxious Document might spur some action? It's laughable to think that handing over money in European banks to American and Russians profiteers could be discussed seriously.
Hi Karen. As you probably know a large portion of the money confiscated from the Russian national bank sits at Euroclear in Brussels, roughly B185€.
Unfortunately we currently have a rightwing PM (De Wever) who does not want to use that cash because he's "afraid" of Russian legal actions. De Wever is looking for support in the EU to keep that money blocked and do nothing with it. Plus I do not see a quick decision because of the actions of De Wever and because the EU has to decide unanimously.... you have this Hungarian chap who is in love with Putin.... Orban.... who'll gladly block anything.
As you point out that point 14 is more then ridiculous.
Reads like two schoolyard bullies who plan to destroy something and than count on sharing the "profits" 50/50 from rebuilding. On top of that the two schoolyard bullies expect the EU to throw in an extra bag of cash.....
The guy (always a guy) who thought this up must have been very drunk while he was consuming way to many magic mushrooms.
Thanks Marc. Let's hope that "fear of Russian legal action" can be overcome before it's too late!
I wonder how many pies Orban - and Fico - have got their fingers in?
I fully agree!!!!!!!
A perfect response to a grotesque joke, indeed.
You have to wonder how much of this was already set in stone during that shameful invitation by our Sucker-in-Chief to the child-murderer in the Kremlin back in August to step on Alaskan land (since he would have been arrested on the spot had he stepped in any European country). A speedy response by 8 European heads of state (all experienced in child-minding) may have prevented this back then. Yet here we are again.
The most absurd point in this absurd 'peace plan' --- slapped on after the fact -- is Trump's bizarre insistence that Zelenskyy wave a wand and get this all done by American Thanksgiving. Ukraine is a constitutional republic whose Rada (Parliament) must finally approve any peace plan. The chances of this happening in 3 days are less than zero. Lev Parnas speculates this date is Putin's fear that whatever further awfulness is in the 'Epstein Files' it will bring Russian dealings with Trump and others into scrutiny, so he wants to do this before that happens.
As with Manafort earlier, this is Putin barking orders while Witkof nods his head, going 'as Your Grace pleases.'
Dear Dr. Snyder. Thank for your dissection of the capitulation plan. Sadly, another example of Putin's dominance of Trump and the Trump administration. How disgraceful and terrifying.
Thank you very much for this much needed clarity.
This commentary by Professor Michael Clarke, the British Defence analyst, is also well worth watching.
https://news.sky.com/video/defence-analyst-michael-clarke-unpacks-ukraine-peace-deal-latest-13474545
Professor Snyder, I had to seek help from the internet to find words that describe this piece because it is now obvious to me that you function at a level well beyond "brilliant." So here goes: divine, transcendent, sublime, dazzling, awe-inspiring, preternatural.
May your insights and inspirational writings continue for many more years.
This is not a “peace treaty” a “28-point” and beyond wish list from Putin- Russia it’s an abomination. And what’s even worse is that thing in the Oval had the audacity to use his social media platform to once again belittle and browbeat Zelenskyy and Ukraine as such ..“UKRAINE ‘LEADERSHIP’ HAS EXPRESSED ZERO GRATITUDE FOR OUR EFFORTS, AND EUROPE CONTINUES TO BUY OIL FROM RUSSIA. THE USA CONTINUES TO SELL MASSIVE $AMOUNTS OF WEAPONS TO NATO, FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UKRAINE (CROOKED JOE GAVE EVERYTHING, FREE, FREE, FREE, INCLUDING “BIG” MONEY!). GOD BLESS ALL THE LIVES THAT HAVE BEEN LOST IN THE HUMAN CATASTROPHE! President DJT”
This is beyond nauseating, the bile just churns in an explosion of words that even a sailor would blush..
The thing in the White House also smirked that if President Zelenskyy didn’t "sign", he could "go on fighting his little heart out."
May the curse of Mary Malone chase him so far over the hills of damnation that the Lord himself couldn't find him with a telescope." (Traditional, Ireland)
Well not familiar with Mary Malone Irish curse but this one from my Irish Great-grandmother -
“May the devil make a ladder from the bones of your back"…
As I have mentioned previously, the best and quickest way to end this war is for Ukraine to WIN the war. Competent US leadership months ago would have initiated a program to provide Ukraine with all the war materiel needed by Ukraine to drive Russian forces from Ukraine territory. Targeting restrictions imposed on Ukraine drones/missiles should be removed. Consider how much better the current situation would be if we had implemented this program 8 or 9 months ago instead of Trump's kowtowing to Putin.
This is not a “peace” treaty. It’s a “pause in the war” treaty designed to backtrack Ukraine to a weaker place and allow Russia to regain its strength so it can that fulfill its stated objective to destroy Ukraine as a nation (because Putin believes the existence of Ukraine is a fiction perpetrated upon him… a grievance of historic magnitudes).
I feel compelled to tell people unfamiliar with this fact that Werner Erhard (creator of the “you create your own reality through the words you think and say” est Training in the late 1960s) conducted training programs for various Russian scientific and cultural organizations starting in 1979. Erhard may have thought he was doing something that would help Russians escape their authoritarian past (this is just a guess, based on what Erhard wrote in 1990, link below), but I think Russia’s mastery of “the world is the way we say it is” language on display in what they (and Trump) call a “peace plan” … even though it is no such thing … demonstrates what they did with Erhard’s teachings. The link below verifies that these teaching programs existed…. that I’m not making this up. I consider the fact that Erhard taught this incredibly powerful psychological “mind control” skill set to top people in Russia (maybe even Putin himself?) to be a very underreported part of global authoritarian history.
https://wernererhardbiography.com/werner-erhard-ussr-1990/
It is a recipe for extortion. Extortion from Americans, Ukrainians and Europeans all who will pay the price. What does the Aggressor have on a President to demand such punishment of people and blatant humiliation of him. What does the Aggressor have on a President to demand that sovereign nations agree to the appropriation of their power and considerable resources rather than use their strength to marshal freedom of a sovereign nation Ukraine and thus of all people.
Thank you Dr Snyder for the transparency and translation of this document. Your work is deeply appreciated.
The people must demonstrate their disgust.
I’ve heard that the document is a rehash of the original one presented to Zelensky earlier in the year and was translated by AI.
There were originally 30 points, 2 of which were removed to make it look more American.
29 The US and the west would bail out the Russian economy after the war.
30 The US and Russia will form a ”Christian Unity” alliance against China.
There’s nothing new just the surrender that Trump gave to Putin in his first phonecall .
Ukraine and Europe cannot accept any part of this Russian colonialist imperialist document .
We cannot let Ukraine down in their time of need. Slava Ukraini 💙💛🇺🇦🌟🇪🇺