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The U.S. Pivot to Russia - and What It Will Mean

Experts ask: Has the U.S. given Russia too much, and too soon?

The meeting between Russia and the United States, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on February 18, 2025. (Photo by Russian Foreign Ministry / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

BOTTOM LINE UP FRONT — It may be the most profound American foreign policy shift in a generation – a move to engage directly with Russia, in a bid to end the war in Ukraine and open channels of economic and diplomatic collaboration that have been limited or nonexistent for years. Even before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, successive American administrations kept their distance from Russia; Vladimir Putin, who came to power a quarter century ago, was viewed as a dictator who controlled all domestic media, eliminated political opponents, and was increasingly hostile towards the West. More recently, Putin was named a war criminal — not only in an indictment from the International War Crimes Tribunal, but also in comments from senior officials of the Biden administration. 

Now, in just a three-week period, the Trump Administration has pivoted sharply: President Trump has spoken directly with Putin; the U.S. has opened direct talks with senior Russian officials; and U.S. officials have criticized Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, calling him “a dictator“ and an ungrateful ally. Last week the U.S. paused military assistance to Ukraine and halted key intelligence-sharing operations with the Ukrainian government. 

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