Russia Reads History as Trump Serves 50-day Ultimatum

Spread love

Russia rebuts NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on “Putin not serious” in the Ukraine War negotiations

By TRH Global Affairs Desk

NEW DELHI, July 15, 2025—Russia rejected claims of NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte that Russian President Vladimir Putin had been “not serious” in negotiations to end the Ukraine War. Rutte made his claims during his meeting with US President Donald Trump on Monday.

Russia dug in heels, saying that “history is the context” in any negotiations on the Ukraine War. Trump yesterday announced 100% tariffs on Russia if Moscow fails to announce a ceasefire in 50 days to end the Ukraine War. Trump announced the threat during meeting with Rutte.

Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs quoted Rutte, saying in the presence of Trump: “Putin did not send serious people to the negotiations. I remember that you (Trump) were able, with Marco Rubio and Steve Witkoff, to get these talks going in Istanbul. I remember – I was myself in Türkiye on NATO business in May – and we put pressure on the Ukrainians to send a serious team to Istanbul. And they did.”

Rutte further claimed that “but then the Russians came up with this historian explaining history of Russia since 1250.” Russian MFA Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova issued “two clarifications regarding the above nonsense” by Rutte.

She said that “this historian” is “Vladimir Medinsky – a distinguished specialist in international relations, scholar, and statesman.” “In contrast, the so-called ‘serious team’ from Ukraine was headed by Defence Minister Rustem Umerov, a man who has never served in the military and whose entire professional background lies in telecommunications management,” she added.

Furthermore, the Russian spokesperson argued that “without an understanding of the historical context, no issue can be resolved – only exacerbated. The ignorance displayed by NATO officials has already resulted in countless casualties across the globe.”

Russia pitches history in its articulation of the Ukraine War. In over two and a half hours long interview to independent American journalist Tucker Carlson, Putin had given a long readout of Russia’s history, spanning from the 13^th century, to legitimize the military action against Ukraine.

Incidentally, Russia has not yet countered the claims of Trump on Putin not paying heeds to his interventions for peace. In a striking anecdote shared during his press briefing, Trump said, “I speak to Putin a lot about getting this done, and then missiles are launched into Kyiv or some other city… I go home and tell the First Lady, ‘I spoke with Vladimir today. We had a wonderful conversation.’ She says, ‘Oh, really? Another city was just bombed.’”

Follow The Raisina Hills on WhatsApp, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, and LinkedIn