Maddow Blog-If Trump's right, and Putin wants to 'solve the problem' in Ukraine, why won't he withdraw? [View all]

[LetMyPeopleVote]

There's a way to end the war in Ukraine quickly, cheaply and without bloodshed: Russia could withdraw. It's the solution the White House isn't pushing.

I’m mindful of the fact that this is obvious to the point of being reductive, but there’s a way to end the war in Ukraine that’s quick, cheap, bloodless, and easy:

Russia could just withdraw.

It’s a point that’s too often left out of the conversation. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2025-08-18T17:29:42.023Z

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/trumps-right-putin-wants-solve-problem-ukraine-wont-withdraw-rcna225629

On CBS News’ “Face the Nation,” the secretary made a similar point, though host Margaret Brennan pressed him on a key detail that too often goes unsaid.

Q: "Doesn't this set a dangerous precedent that the United States now accepts the concept that it is okay to seize land by force?"

Rubio: "Putin has already seized land by force."

Q: "Are you demanding a withdrawal?"

Rubio: "Both sides are going to have to make concessions."

— The Bulwark (@thebulwark.com) 2025-08-17T15:48:44.282Z

.....Olga Rudenko, the editor in chief of the Kyiv Independent in Ukraine, has a new opinion piece in The New York Times with a straightforward headline: “All Russia Needs to Do Is Go Home.” From the column:

The meeting between Mr. Putin and President Trump on Friday was a stark reminder of a simple truth: that the real barrier, the only real barrier, between Mr. Trump and peace in Ukraine (and his coveted Nobel Prize) is Mr. Putin. Russia could end the war in Ukraine at any moment by stopping its attacks and withdrawing its forces. By simply going home. Mr. Putin could end it with a phone call.

....For all of the complexities surrounding possible territorial “swaps,” security guarantees and diplomatic partnerships, there’s a far more straightforward solution just sitting there, waiting for attention: Putin could withdraw his forces from Ukraine......

Trump has spent months insisting that Putin wants “peace,” and the Republican reiterated the point to Fox News’ Sean Hannity after his failed summit in Alaska, saying that he genuinely believes that the Russian dictator wants to “solve the problem.”

But this doesn’t have to be complicated: All Putin has to do is decide to stop fighting the war he started. He picked the fight, assuming it’d be easy. Ukraine proved to be far more formidable than Russia expected; Russia has paid a heavy price for its miscalculation; and Russia could decide — literally at any time — to simply end the unprovoked conflict.

“Russia could just go home,” Rudenko’s New York Times piece concluded. This would end the war quickly, without additional bloodshed, and without investments. If the White House doesn’t see this a goal worth pursuing, perhaps it should explain why not.