It’s Tuesday, October 20. This is The Front Page, your daily window into the world of The Free Press—and our take on the world at large. Today: Nora Bussigny reports from the aftermath of the Paris protests. Suzy Weiss catches up with David Sabatini after his courtroom win. Arthur Brooks meets his machine. And much more.
But first: The Putin pivot.
The leaders of the U.S., Russia, and China may soon sit down to decide Ukraine’s fate—without Volodymyr Zelensky at the table. According to The Wall Street Journal, Vladimir Putin pitched the summit during a phone call with Trump earlier this month, the same call in which the two struck a deal for the U.S. to buy Russian diesel. Since then, Trump has waived sanctions against Moscow and lashed out at Zelensky, saying the Ukrainian leader doesn’t really want the war to end.
The Trump administration insists its posture toward Russia has not changed, but Aaron MacLean says the evidence suggests otherwise. From the diesel deal to reports that Washington may be withholding early warnings of incoming Russian missiles from Ukraine, he sees “a gangster foreign policy” emerging. Under that approach, America looks out for itself and no longer bothers to pretend otherwise. And if a summit does happen after the midterms, Aaron asks, what’s to stop Trump from striking a grand bargain—pushing Ukraine into a deal Moscow likes in exchange for Russia and China leaning on Iran to accept one Washington likes?
It’s all happening just as Russia is losing ground in eastern Ukraine and suffering mounting casualties. On the latest episode of School of War, retired Australian major general Mick Ryan tells Aaron why Kyiv’s battlefield wins aren’t becoming political leverage, and why Putin’s best remaining hope is Trump.
—The Editors
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