(NewsNation) — The high-stakes meeting between President Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday went off without a hitch. Now, all eyes turn to Vladimir Putin after he met with Trump late last week.
Trump said plans are in motion for a face-to-face meeting between Zelenskyy and Putin. Which leaves the question: Is Trump going to take control of the peace negotiations?
Bill O’Reilly told “On Balance” on Monday that Trump will need to placate Putin to some extent because of the Russian leader’s irrational behavior.
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“You’re dealing with a person who would kill millions of people,” O’Reilly said. “You’ve got to be very methodical. But the way to get him is that Putin doesn’t want to die.
“All narcissists are that way. He doesn’t want to die. But if the world, including China, lines up against him and starves Russia, Putin will die. His own army will kill him. That’s what he fears the most.”
Trump keeping positive manner to avoid nuclear war
O’Reilly acknowledged that even while Trump was furious with Putin on his way back from Alaska, he’s keeping things cordial to avoid potential nuclear war.
However, Trump has drawn up very stringent economic sanctions to throw at Putin if peace talks break down.
“He’s not going to make them public,” O’Reilly says. “And he shouldn’t. There’s no reason to poke the bear unless you are ready to go, and fight the bear all the way.”
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“People don’t understand the danger here, because Putin is a psychopath. Putin, in my opinion, would use nukes. He’d use them.”
Trump must try to get Putin to stop war
Russia launched rockets against Ukraine on Monday, which is a sign that Putin isn’t going to stop until he’s forced to, O’Reilly acknowledged.
He feels there’s going to be a reset on Trump’s end. That could entail a third meeting or other possible options.
“You try to get this thing under control,” O’Reilly added. “But at the same time, you know you might fail. And you have to have a plan B.”
“Right now, Trump is doing the correct thing and trying to get this thing settled.”
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