Tuberville casts doubt on Putin's willingness to negotiate Russia-Ukraine war

Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) questioned Russian President Vladimir Putin’s willingness to meet with President Trump to negotiate a peace deal in Ukraine.

“This war has been handled so badly by the Ukrainians and by NATO and the United States that Putin has got a foot in the door in doing whatever he wants to do. Why would he want to negotiate with anybody,” Tuberville said in a conversation with radio host John Catsimatidis in an interview aired on “The Cats Roundtable” Sunday on WABC 770 AM. 

The former football coach drew an analogy through sports strategy on the field. 

“Say it’s a football game and you’re [up] three touchdowns. Why would you want to do some kind of deal when you’re winning? The guy is winning,” the lawmaker stated.

“President Trump has got his hands full trying to get Putin to the negotiating table. But I think he can do it because Putin has also got problems with his economy and his people,” he added. 

“They’re tired of getting shot and killed and maimed.”

The death toll has climbed above hundreds of thousands for both countries that have sent soldiers into the line of battle. 

Trump has publicly reiterated his willingness to meet with Putin, as has the Russian leader, however, neither has confirmed a scheduled time to talk. 

Earlier this month, Ukraine’s army launched a counterattack in Russia’s Kursk region seeking to regain a strong fighting stance despite continued aggression from the Kremlin. 

NATO General Secretary Mark Rutte warned Ukrainian leaders not to enter negotiations without the upper hand in battle. 

“At this moment, clearly, Ukraine is not there,” Rutte told the European Parliament’s foreign affairs and defense committees. 

“Because they cannot, at this moment, negotiate from a position of strength. And we have to do more to make sure, by changing the trajectory of the conflict, that they can get to the position of strength.”