"I am sure President Donald Trump and his envoys to Russia, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, sincerely want to stop the killing in Ukraine, but they are failing and will continue to fail as long as they persist in their naive view that this is just a big real estate deal and that their backgrounds in real estate give them an advantage."
"For starters, yes, you could say that Russian President Vladimir Putin is in the real estate business in Ukraine, but not in the way Trump or Witkoff or Kushner have been in the business. Putin is in the real estate business in Ukraine the same way Adolf Hitler was in the real estate business in Poland. Hitler coveted territory not to build a hotel or housing for profit to benefit the local residents."
"You want a Henry Kissinger or James Baker-type statesman who understands the difference between real estate and war and peace. Real estate is a positive-sum game: Both sides can profit from a well-struck transaction. And that is the goal. In war and peace, when one side holds fascist views and is the clear aggressor, and the other side holds democratic views and is the clear victim, you are in a zero-sum game."
President Trump’s envoys to Russia rely on real estate dealmaking skills to end the war in Ukraine, and those approaches are inadequate. Vladimir Putin seeks territory for nationalist domination rather than mutual economic benefit. Comparing Putin’s ambitions to Hitler’s territorial desires underscores that the conflict is driven by aggression, not commerce. Real estate deals create positive-sum outcomes where both parties can profit. War with a fascist aggressor is a zero-sum struggle that requires principled, strategic diplomacy. Experienced statesmen who prioritize moral values and strategic interests are necessary rather than negotiators trained in transactions and profit.
Read at www.mercurynews.com
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