International Press Review dated 30 June – 11 July 2025
- Anton Kuchuhidze
- 5 days ago
- 6 min read
In recent weeks, international media have focused on the growing dissatisfaction of President Trump with the actions of vladimir putin, as well as signs of the formation of a new, more coherent and consistent U.S. foreign policy doctrine. Known for his unpredictability and pragmatic approach to international relations, Trump appears to be evolving toward a model of limited but decisive intervention, based on the strategic use of American power.
According to Politico, in the context of russia's war against Ukraine, this new approach may signal a tougher stance toward the kremlin. While avoiding direct military involvement, the U.S. may intensify pressure through sanctions and military aid to Ukraine, especially if European allies take on a greater share of the financial burden. One key initiative under consideration is the possible confiscation of $300 billion in frozen russian assets held in European banks to fund Ukraine's defense.
Additionally, The Washington Post notes that President Donald Trump has recently escalated his criticism of putin, accusing him of mass killings and a blatant disregard for human life. Trump stated that he is “not pleased” with putin’s behavior, calling his words “meaningless” and “nonsense.” In this context, Trump announced the resumption of defensive weapons deliveries to Ukraine, which had previously been suspended due to concerns over depleting U.S. military stockpiles.
Following this, a phone call took place between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, which the Ukrainian leader described as the most productive to date, particularly emphasizing air defense issues.
In a Wall Street Journal article, the author asserts that for several months, russia has been attempting to influence U.S. President Donald Trump using flattery, promises of economic cooperation, and claims of a desire for peace hoping to divide Western support for Ukraine. Meanwhile, the kremlin has continued to intensify its military attacks on Ukrainian cities and calls for a military resolution to the war. However, this strategy appears to be failing. Trump has been increasingly critical of putin and announced his intention to resume arms deliveries to Ukraine.
Politico also reports on the European Union’s intention to create a new €100 billion fund for long-term support of Ukraine. This fund could be included in the next seven-year EU budget, which is expected to be presented later this month. If approved by member states, disbursements would begin in 2028 to ensure stable financing for Ukraine.
At the same time, Ukraine is showing a powerful breakthrough in the development of its own military equipment and innovative weaponry, transforming into a key hub for advanced military technologies. This opens up new prospects not only for strengthening national security but also for enhancing the defense capabilities of its allies. However, despite these achievements, the war continues, and the threat from russia remains extremely high.
President Donald Trump on Tuesday stepped up his criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin as he reiterated plans to send more weapons to Ukraine to aid in its war against Russia.
“I’m not happy with Putin, I can tell you that much right now, because he’s killing a lot of people,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting. “We get a lot of bulls--- thrown at us by Putin. You want to know the truth? He is very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.”
President Trump is considering sending an additional Patriot air-defense system to Ukraine after vowing in recent days to strengthen Kyiv against Russian attacks, according to two officials.
Trump lashed out at Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, saying “we get a lot of bulls—t thrown at us by Putin.” But the administration hasn’t disclosed what additional weapons it is planning to provide Ukraine in response to Putin’s rebuff of Trump’s calls to halt the three-year-old conflict.
Sending another Patriot would be a significant step for the White House, marking the first time Trump has approved providing a major weapons system to Kyiv beyond the number authorized by the Biden White House.
President Trump said Monday the U.S. would resume providing Ukraine with arms to help it withstand Russian attacks after months of trying without success to draw Moscow into negotiations on ending the war.
“We have to, they have to be able to defend themselves,” Trump said of aiding Kyiv during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “They are getting hit very hard. Now they are getting hit very hard. We’re gonna have to send more weapons.”
His comments were the strongest indication so far that Trump has come around to the idea of strengthening Kyiv’s defenses less than a week after it was disclosed that the Pentagon was withholding a shipment of arms earmarked for Ukraine.
In recent weeks, Trump’s tone on Russia has shifted. When Putin offered to assist with mediation over the conflict between Israel and Iran, Trump brushed the offer aside: “I said, ‘Do me a favor, mediate your own. Let’s mediate Russia first, OK?’”
A call last week between the two leaders appeared to strengthen Trump’s conviction that Putin had no intention of ending the war. According to the Kremlin, Putin told Trump that Moscow was committed to its goals in Ukraine and it preferred to achieve them through diplomacy. But as long as that wasn’t possible, Russia would continue the war.
Trump later expressed his disappointment. “I don’t think he’s there,” he said of Putin. “I’m just saying, I don’t think he’s looking to stop, and that’s too bad.”
There are four reasons to believe that Trump’s intervention in the Middle East could lead the administration toward a new approach to the Russia-Ukraine war.
The best way to deter Putin is to show that the alliance is committed to supporting Ukraine’s defense over the long haul. And the best way to do this in a way that meets the self-help requirement of the emerging Trump doctrine also rests with Europe. Its banks hold the bulk of $300 billion in frozen Russian hard currency reserves, whose confiscation is advocated by various European leaders and parliaments as well as U.S. experts such as former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, former State Department counselor Philip Zelikow, and former World Bank President Robert Zoellick.
These Russian reserves represent the equivalent of many years of U.S. funding for Ukraine and would allow Ukraine to defend itself from Putin’s massive recent attacks on civilian targets. A bit of Trump-induced pressure could be decisive in driving Europe to stop prevaricating and finally make use of these assets, which in turn would relieve the United States of any major financial burden for the war. Using Russian assets to fund Ukraine’s defense—including for buying U.S.-made weapons—is, in its essence, a very Trumpian idea: the geopolitical equivalent of getting Mexico to pay for a border wall.
We all know Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine with tanks in 2022. But many don’t know that in 2024, he invaded Romania — with tweets.
In both cases he failed — for now. But Putin’s aggression is focused on the U.S. and all its allies. He’s spending millions of dollars, bombarding European voters with manipulative social media and disinformation campaigns on a mass scale. It’s a new type of warfare on democracy that eliminates the need to roll tanks into capitals.
Putin’s constantly evolving playbook is the result of his failed military campaign to capture Kyiv and strangle Ukrainian democracy. He ran into Ukraine’s indominable resilience, and as a result, he began deploying a long-standing Russian (and Soviet) strategy to destroy Western democracies from within by supporting and cultivating pro-Putin political candidates. And TikTok, Telegram and other social media channels are now weapons in this new kind of war.
Ukraine is still dependent on US intelligence and on allied air defenses to intercept Russian missiles. Kyiv, though, now gets about 40% of its weapons from its own sources, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. That, the country says, can offer a model for how its allies in NATO can ramp up production for a more dangerous and volatile future.
When it comes to armored vehicles, “we can produce as many as you need,” Zelenskiy’s adviser for strategic affairs, Oleksandr Kamyshin, said in an interview in Kyiv. He called weapons production “Ukraine’s oil,” a strategic asset. “We are rethinking warfare,” said Kamyshin, a former auditor at KPMG who went on to run the country’s railway system. “My country is becoming the arsenal of the free world.”
The European Union is considering setting up a €100 billion ($117 billion) fund to support Ukraine as its war with Russia following Moscow’s full-scale invasion shows no signs of ending.
The money may become part of the EU’s proposal for its next seven-year budget, which is due to be presented later this month, according to people familiar with the matter. If accepted by member states as part of budgetary negotiations, the funding would start being disbursed in 2028 to maintain steady financial assistance to the war-torn country, the people said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
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