While President Donald Trump was once predictable for world leaders, one international security expert explained that the persuasion-through-flattery method no longer appears to be working.
This week, the Defense Department announced that it was withholding aid to Ukraine, claiming that providing the equipment could compromise U.S. readiness. NBC News reported Friday morning that the equipment was on the truck and about to head to Ukraine from the European bases when Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called it off.
Michael Bociurkiw, an Atlantic Council fellow and former spokesperson for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, told CNN on Friday that the president is now more erratic on foreign policy.
"As you all know better in the United States than I do, Trump can say one thing one minute and actually do something [different] the next. So it's very, very difficult to track his intentions," he said from Odessa, Ukraine.
"I do believe that after watching Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada, Keir Starmer in the U.K., that buttering up Mr. Trump just doesn't do it anymore," he continued. It "could be that if the aid does not come, that is promised from the United States, that Ukraine has to take a different tack, perhaps send a pitbull ambassador to Washington to push things along. That's what Mr. Trump seems to respect most, is people who are thugs, you know, who are tough on him, but not people who say yes or are nice all the time."
Trump had a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin that left him, telling reporters he was "not happy" with the world leader.
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