On Sunday, Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin stated that the only person with the power to put pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to negotiate an end to the war with Ukraine is President Trump.
On AWN’s “This Week,” Mullin informed co-host Jonathan Karl, “Putin knows the one person that can truly change the war is the United States.” “If we went all-in for Ukraine, if we went all-in with the resources we have, from air superiority to the weapons that we can deploy to Ukraine, Putin knows at that point he would be in an extremely negative position.”
“Listen, we want to end the war,” President Trump may tell Putin at the meeting. We apologize if this requires more communication, but we will not let you to proceed. Alright, then, we need to come to an agreement or you’re going to make us become even more engaged.
On Wednesday, Trump used social media to declare that his team will start discussions with Putin to conclude the conflict, which has lasted over three years. According to Trump, he and Putin negotiated a peace deal in which Russia would gain control of some Ukrainian land and Ukraine would give up its hopes of joining NATO, two huge concessions on Ukraine’s part.
Before talks even start, many international leaders claim Trump has caved to Putin’s demands. Additionally, Trump told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of his conversation with Putin after it ended.
Trump subsequently stated that Ukraine would “of course” be included in discussions, while he had before failed to mention the possibility.
This week, a source informed AWN that special envoy Steve Witkoff, national security advisor Mike Waltz, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit Saudi Arabia.
The three congressmen—Waltz, Rubio, and Witkoff—are reportedly set to meet with high-ranking Russian officials. Whether or if Ukraine will be a party to the negotiations and the precise time of the trip are also unknown.
The ideal situation, according to Mullin, would have representatives from both sides sitting down to negotiate.
“I know the negotiations are moving forward, and we want to have Ukraine and Russia both at the table, and I think the negotiations go better if both sides are looking for a peace deal, because they’re at a neutral position,” stated Mullin.
Despite ongoing criticism, Mullin lauded Trump’s negotiating strategies.
This is a really astute move by President Trump. Zelenskyy is to meet with him. He is engaging in discussions with him. Here we have Marco Rubio, the Secretary of State. According to Mullin, it was seen that the senators and members had meetings with Zelenskyy in Munich and are now meeting with Putin in Saudi Arabia. Before bringing them to the table to negotiate, what it accomplishes, Jon, is to divide them, have them speak about what they’re willing to accept, and then figure out a way ahead. “Jon, it usually explodes when you bring people to the table too quickly.”
Additionally, Mullin supported Elon Musk’s initiatives to reform the American government.
Mass layoffs were ordered by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) following the expiration of their deferred resignation program on February 12th. Nearly 200,000 government employees are considered probationary employees, defined as those with less than two years of employment, and they are the primary target of DOGE’s initial efforts.
You have to start reducing some fat whenever you take over something, and Elon Musk has done it numerous times with different companies. “Payroll is currently the largest expenditure for the United States government,” Mullin said with a hint of regret.
Karl pointed out that Medicare and Social Security, which are considered entitlement programs, account up the lion’s share of the federal budget.
Many Democratic politicians have demanded that Musk appear before Congress, and he has pledged to be transparent in his actions. Mullin said that Trump should be the one to decide if he does.
Trump, the president, gets to decide. “Remember that President Trump appointed Musk as a consultant, just like countless other successful corporations around the globe, including mine, have done, to step back and assess the situation objectively,” Mullin said.
