Luke Harding

And now it's really the only state capable of shooting down Shahids, which are kind of 21st century menace.

And I think it's a bit of a supreme geopolitical irony because actually one of the countries that's been asking Ukraine for help is America.

And I don't know if you had that on your bingo card, Lucy, when Zelensky was dressed down last year in the Oval Office by Trump, who said, you've got no cards, you've got no cards.

Turns out Ukraine has got some cards.

I mean, what is vital to understand is that there is no meaningful process.

I think the grammar of news, we go on about talks and resolution and negotiations as if there's some sort of teleology that we get to an agreed destination.

And the reality is that Putin doesn't want to stop

this war.

He thinks he can win.

He thinks he can win either on the battlefield, but through military might and attrition, or actually a quicker route goes through the White House and Donald Trump's office with the Americans browbeating Zelensky pressuring Kiev to give up territory, in particular the eastern Donbass region, which Russia wants and Trump seems to think that Russia should have.

So, you know, there is no meaningful diplomatic track at the moment.

And what I find quite astonishing is that Trump's two emissaries, his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and his real estate friend, Steve Wyckoff, have made multiple trips to Moscow.

They're planning another one and as of yet have not been to Kiev at all.

I mean, it's sort of, it's kind of pseudo diplomacy.

It's faux diplomacy.

It's the appearance of action

without actual action.

So I think diplomatically we can expect very little.

Yeah, I mean, Prince Harry, his visit to Kiev is definitely a morale booster.

Last time he came, he brought the Guardian with him.