Push for End of War in Gaza, Ukraine: Trump Arrives at NATO Summit with Dual Peace Agenda
June 24—Sources close to the White House report that President Donald Trump, who has arrived in The Hague for the NATO summit, intends to push full-bore for ends to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's bloody slaughter in Gaza, as well as for an end to hostilities between Russia and Ukraine.
Fresh off his success working with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the dangerous war between Israel and Iran, these sources say that Trump has reportedly some chips to play in the form of secret promises that were made during the process that ended the war in a ceasefire last night.
Pressuring Putin on Ukraine
These sources say that Trump had several times chided Putin, who had said he would get Iran to agree to a ceasefire and to work out the terms for a fair negotiated settlement of a deal ending its nuclear weapons program, the which has yet to be achieved, well, Vladimir if it is so easy for you to do this in Iran, why can't you work a ceasefire out in Ukraine? The stumbling block there, Putin has said, is that it is Ukraine who does not really want to end the war, and wants ultimately to bring in NATO troops to fight Russians; he has said that a ceasefire without certain safeguards would allow Ukraine to dig in and rearm its positions in a war that it now losing, rapidly on the ground.
These sources say that Trump got Putin to agree to a 30-day ceasefire, during which the U.S., Ukraine's primary arms supplier, would halt all shipments to Ukraine and not allow for weapons to be transferred to the front.
Zelenskyy in Trump’s Crosshairs
"Trump now believes that Ukraine's NATO-backed dictator Volodymyr Zelenskyy is the real obstacle to peace," said a source. "When all is said and done, Putin knows he is going to have to compromise on the borders of the 4 Oblasts that have joined Russia since his special operation began in February 2022. He will not compromise on Crimea, which was annexed in 2014. But you have this punk Zelenskyy saying that he won't give up an inch of territory. Not an inch. Well Trump intends to force him to agree to give up many miles—if not, then the U.S. simply abandons Ukraine, and lets NATO and the equally loudmouth Europeans deal with the outcome, which may be the end of Ukraine as a sovereign nation. This is not my war, Trump has told people. It is Obama's and Biden's, and the American people won't shed blood for Ukraine."
The confrontation on the issue of a negotiated settlement may come as soon as this week's NATO meeting, sources report, who also note that Zelenskyy has come under assassination threat in recent days. "He is not the only or even the most capable leader in Ukraine," said a source close to the White House. "He made himself a dictator by declaring martial law and cancelling all elections. Trump is going to promise him a truce and ceasefire to allow for new elections. He will also tell him that he would see what he could do about the assassination threats, but will tell him it is not coming from him, and probably not the Russians either."
Deal-Making and Sanctions Relief
Trump is waiting to see what transpires at the summit before he orders his people to set up a new round of talks between Russia and Ukraine and decides who might attend those talks. If Putin were to attend, then he would come also, which means some deal would have to be ready for signature or at least ready to be announced in outline.
These sources say that Putin is incentivized to make a deal because he wants sanctions relief for the Russian economy; there is no need for additional sanctions as some stupid Europeans and people inside his administration have asked for, which includes Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is also serving as National Security Advisor.
Gaza Ceasefire Deal in Motion
On Gaza, the problem in past negotiations has been Bibi's refusal to negotiate in good faith for an actual end to the war. There has, however, been widespread speculation that Netanyahu may have been forced by Trump to concede on this in order to get his tacit approval to strike Iran's nuclear sites 12 days ago, and then to get the U.S. to come in with the bunker buster bombing mission two days ago that effectively ended the war.
Haaretz respected security analyst Amos Harel writes today, after talking about Bibi's proclamation of victory, while agreeing to Trump's ceasefire: "What Netanyahu did not say is what was agreed between him and Trump in the conversations leading up to the cease-fire. Did the U.S. president demand a price in Gaza – an end to the war there (belatedly), a full withdrawal of the IDF in exchange for the release of all hostages and bodies, or perhaps a willingness to advance diplomatically on the Palestinian issue in return for normalization with Saudi Arabia?
"Trump has not abandoned his dream of a new regional alliance, one that includes Israel and the conservative Sunni states of the Gulf – and perhaps also earns him a Nobel Peace Prize."
Terms and Aftermath in Gaza
Sources close to the White House say they are hearing that Bibi will agree to the terms that Hamas has already once agreed to: a ceasefire and a partial withdrawal of Israeli forces, then serious negotiations on an end to the fighting and a new non-Hamas government in Gaza, and a permanent end to the war. In the first phase, up to 10 living hostages and 20 hostage remains would be released; and after the conclusion of the final peace deal, within 60 days, the rest would be released, while Israel would not relaunch the war while the talks were taking place, even if they went beyond 60 days.
During this entire time, the borders to Gaza will be opened to allow the free flow of humanitarian aid and medical supplies to reach its dying people, with the UN playing a renewed role in distribution efforts, which under disastrous Israeli and American efforts have produced piles of bodies killed by the IDF at distribution points.
These sources say that Bibi has reluctantly concluded that he will have to submit to new elections before the end of the year, and that while he has been praised for the success of the Iran campaign, he could not survive the people if the hostages were not all returned. "Besides," said a person who speaks with the President, "do you see what Gaza looks like? Did you see that Haaretz article on Gaza and Rafah? They compared what has been done to the nuclear attack on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and concluded what the IDF has done in Gaza is worse destruction: Rafah no longer exists! What more can Bibi do?"
This and other sources also report that the daily accounts of starving people being gunned down by Israeli soldiers and private guards at food distribution sites—sites which Israel and the U.S. helped their puppet Gazan Humanitarian Foundation set up—have shocked the world. As part of any deal, from the word go, the borders would be open to allow the free flow of aid to Gaza's starving and dying people, with the United Nations allowed to distribute food.
Sources say that Trump has already instructed his Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, who remains involved in working out an Iran nuclear deal, to set up a new round of Gaza peace talks, that he says will finally produce results. Trump also believes that Hamas is ready to deal, as the recent war has shown that they can hardly count on Iran for help, as they and Hezbollah were shown to be totally useless in offering resistance to Israel's attack on Tehran. "Few people have said the obvious," said a source with knowledge in the field, "but it is clear as day that the war ended Iran's 'ring of fire,' which the Israelis had already long ago neutralized. Iran has already told its proxies to cut their own deal. That is another part of the picture that Trump and Witkoff believe can produce a breakthrough."