Vladimir Putin has sent Donald Trump a brutal message in a potential major blow to peace talks. The US President met his Russian counterpart in Alaska on August 15, in an attempt to breathe new life into ceasefire negotiations and bring peace to Ukraine.
Following the peace summit, an upbeat Trump convened a meeting of European and NATO leaders with Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House on Monday to try and thrash out the details of a comprehensive peace agreement. The White House incumbent indicated Ukraine might have to give up the Donbas to secure a cessation of hostilities, while hinting the US could provide security guarantees to Kyiv in the form of “air support”. Trump seemed convinced that Putin wanted to please him, telling France’s President Macron during a high-profile meeting on Monday: “I think he wants to make a deal for me, you understand that? As crazy as it sounds.”
However, the Kremlin tyrant appeared to snub Trump’s peace efforts overnight on Thursday. Russia’s army carried out an intense night of bombings, targeting several cities and regions across Ukraine.
A Flex electronics factory was hit by Kalibr cruise missiles in Mukachevo, Zakarpattia region. Flex is a Singaporean-American multinational corporation, originally founded in Silicon Valley in 1969.
The company’s corporate headquarters are in Austin, Texas, and it has manufacturing operations in over 30 countries. The Ukrainian plant produces household appliances. At the time of the attack, 600 workers were reported to be on site.
At least 15 people were injured, with one person said to be in a serious condition, according to local reports. Pro-Kremlin bloggers celebrated the overnight strikes, with one mockingly writing: “Minus the American factory in Mukachevo. VLADIMIR – STOP.”
Commenting on the overnight attack, Andriy Kovalenko – the head of the Ukrainian Centre for Countering Disinformation – said: “Putin, like an ordinary rat, is sending a signal to Trump.”
The Kremlin also moved quickly to play down talk of an imminent meeting between Putin and Zelensky, after Trump renewed his call for the two to hold direct talks.
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said any meeting would have to be prepared “gradually… starting with the expert level and thereafter going through all the required steps”.
