From his perspective, Putin is now winning the yearslong struggle with the U.S.

In 2014, after Putin occupied and annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, the international community slapped sanctions on Russia. Russia followed this by invading in 2022, and subsequently occupying 20% of Ukraine, which has prompted further sanctions. 

A sign that the current turnaround in relations with the U.S. is about much more than Ukraine is the appointment last month of Kirill Dmitriev as Moscow's special envoy on international economic and investment cooperation. Dmitriev, whose role is to focus on removing sanctions and opening up trade with America, attended talks in Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh in February.

After the Trump-Zelensky spat, Dmitriev wrote one word on X: “Historic.”

Meanwhile, Putin is closer than ever to his war aim of removing Zelenskyy from power.

An interview that Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., did Sunday with NBC News’ “Meet the Press," in which he suggested that Zelenskyy “needs to come to his senses and come back to the table in gratitude or someone else needs to lead the country to do that,” has been replayed on Russian media. 

And national security adviser Mike Waltz and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., also suggested that Zelenskyy might need to step down to secure a ceasefire. 

Polling in Ukraine, however, shows that the democratically elected Zelenskyy remains popular among his own people. He was also greeted warmly by European leaders, some of whom met him at a summit in London on Sunday. 

After the summit, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced billions in support for Ukraine, including a loan of 2.2 billion British pounds ($2.8 billion) to support the country, funded through the freezing of Russian assets. 

Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday thanked British Foreign Secretary David Lammy for his country’s role in encouraging Europe to provide for its own defense and push for peace in Ukraine, the State Department said.

Starmer has said he is “ready and willing” to put British troops on the ground in Ukraine to help guarantee its security as part of an international effort to support a peace deal.