What if Putin won't meet with Zelenskyy?

The BBC is reporting that Vladimir Putin might not be interested in meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. If Putin is just downplaying things to dampen the momentum from Monday's White House summit, that's understandable. If he's serious about not meeting President Zelenskyy, then it's time to demolish Russia's economy.

President Trump has pressure on him, too. After all of his talk about children dying, he can't afford to do nothing. Doing nothing will make him look like he's caving to Putin. Doing nothing will feed the storyline that President Trump talks a great game but flinches when the game's on the line.

Frankly, that's why I can't picture President Trump settling for doing nothing. Secretary Rubio said that they hadn't pulled the trigger on sanctions after the Alaska Summit because that would've ended negotiations. That makes sense from the standpoint of not wanting to end negotiations. If, however, Putin isn't serious about negotiating in good faith, then there's nothing preventing Trump from demolishing Russia's economy.

As usual, Scott Jennings offered some important insights into the next steps in the negotiations, where we've come from and where we're likely heading:

Putin needs to be careful in this situation. He can't string President Trump along indefinitely. If Putin attempts that, he risks pissing Trump off. Further, there's a hint what Trump is thinking. Trump said this:

Trump admitted the conflict was "a tough one" to solve and conceded it was possible the Russian president was not interested in ending hostilities.

"We're going to find out about President Putin in the next couple of weeks," he said on Tuesday. "It's possible that he doesn't want to make a deal."

Notice that PResident Trump said that they'dfind out Putin's intent "in the next couple of weeks." Trump isn't isn't interested in slow-walking negotiations.

If Trump is pushing the agenda:

Trump suggested "it would be better" if Putin and Zelensky met without him, in an interview with conservative radio talk show host Mark Levin late on Tuesday night. He added that he would attend a meeting with the two leaders "if necessary", but wanted to "see what happens".

The Russian president told Trump on Monday that he was "open" to the idea of direct talks with Ukraine, but the next day Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov watered down that already vague commitment. Any meeting would have to be prepared "gradually... starting with the expert level and thereafter going through all the required steps", he said, repeating a frequent Kremlin line.

Lavrov can yap all he wants. Trump shouldn't pay attention to Lavrov. He's just noise. Putin is the one that matters. If Putin won't meet with Zelenskyy, Trump should just slap sanctions on Russia's trading pertners. Further isolate Russia from the world economy, too. Let Putin know that he's playing a risky game that won't end well for Putin. Finally, let Putin know that the time for gamesmanship is over. Tell Putin that it's time to put his big boy britches on and face the music.