From Rome to Russia
Driving the Week: The Pope’s Funeral, Putin’s Betrayal, and a Frustrated State Department
The Pope is Dead
The biggest story in the world this week is the death of Pope Francis on Easter Monday. Catholics around the world (including this author) are praying for the repose of his soul.
The pope’s death sets the stage for the biggest funeral in Europe since the passing of Queen Elizabeth II. President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump will attend the funeral, along with dozens of world leaders including French President Emmanuel Macro, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, his First Lady Olena Zelenska, as well as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen among others.
This will turn Rome into a city of prayerful mourning and a potential stage for diplomacy.
Notably, this will be the first state funeral that Zelenskyy has attended since Russia’s expanded invasion of his country. Will Ukraine’s president wear a t-shirt or similar casual wear to Pope Francis’s funeral?
Notably absent from the funeral will be Russian President Vladimir Putin, who remains under an international arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court. (The Kremlin has yet to announce who, if anyone, will represent Moscow.)
Putin Breaks His Own Ceasefire
Less noticed over the long holiday weekend and the death of Pope Francis, was the fact that Putin declared—and promptly broke—his own ceasefire.
The 30-hour truce, which the Kremlin announced unilaterally, was meant to last from April 19–21 and coincide with the rare alignment of Catholic and Orthodox Easter celebrations.
President Zelenskyy, however, reported 59 instances of Russian shelling and five assaults by units along the front line, as well as dozens of drone strikes.
The failed ceasefire has drawn fresh scrutiny of Putin’s motives and continued frustration in Washington.
Recall how Secretary Marco Rubio warned last week that the United States might withdraw from peace negotiations if Russia failed to show tangible progress. Meanwhile, President Trump, who previously secured a Ukrainian agreement to a 30-day ceasefire plan, expressed concern that Putin was “stalling.”
Sadly, Russia’s broken ceasefire should not be a shock. The Kremlin revels in using promises of peace as camouflage for war. This process will continue to frustrate Washington until the White House changes its negotiating strategy.
Russian Violence Demands a New Approach
Recognizing how Putin is playing games with Trump, my colleague RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery and I penned an important piece in The National Interest.
In it, we argue that it is high time for the United States take off the velvet gloves apply a policy of maximum pressure on Russia.
Even before Putin broke his own Easter ceasefire, we argued: “The United States cannot ignore the severity of Russia’s Palm Sunday assault—or the contempt Putin’s sustained bombing campaign shows for Trump’s push for peace.”
This shouldn’t be a difficult shift for the White House. Indeed, we suggest that National Security Advisor Mike Waltz adopt his originally-proposed gameplan: using conditional escalation to ratchet up the pressure on Russia.
In the piece, we explain what a maximum pressure campaign on Russia could look like. This includes cutting Biden’s $65 “oil price cap” to $35, tightening tech export bans, and labeling Russia a “primary money laundering concern” to deter foreign banks from doing business with sanctions evaders. “It is time to show the Kremlin American strength, not accommodation.” If the White House does not change tack, we warned, that “attacks like the Palm Sunday bombardment of Sumy will continue.”
Unfortunately, over Easter, Putin has already proved us right.