This article was originally published by Michael Snyder at The Economic Collapse Blog. 

We have reached such a pivotal moment in world history.  During his time in the White House, Joe Biden brought us closer to nuclear war with Russia than ever before.  If Kamala Harris had won the election, I am convinced that a nuclear war with Russia would have almost certainly happened during her term.

But Donald Trump won the election instead, and now he has a historic opportunity.  He can end the conflict in Ukraine and avoid a nuclear war with Russia.  If he is able to do that, he will save countless lives.  However, if he handles this situation with Russia poorly and nuclear missiles start flying back and forth, it will be the end of America as we know it today.

It is not going to be easy to end the war in Ukraine.  Anyone who suggests otherwise simply does not understand the dynamics that are at play.

The good news is that, unlike Biden, Trump actually wants to make a deal, and on Wednesday, he posted a message on Truth Social in which he revealed quite a bit about what he is thinking…

I’m not looking to hurt Russia. I love the Russian people, and always had a very good relationship with President Putin – and this despite the Radical Left’s Russia, Russia, Russia HOAX. We must never forget that Russia helped us win the Second World War, losing almost 60,000,000 lives in the process. All of that being said, I’m going to do Russia, whose Economy is failing, and President Putin, a very big FAVOR. Settle now, and STOP this ridiculous War! IT’S ONLY GOING TO GET WORSE. If we don’t make a “deal,” and soon, I have no other choice but to put high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States, and various other participating countries. Let’s get this war, which never would have started if I were President, over with! We can do it the easy way, or the hard way – and the easy way is always better. It’s time to “MAKE A DEAL.” NO MORE LIVES SHOULD BE LOST!!!

I very much agree with Trump that we need to end this ridiculous war.

But Trump needs to be very careful.  Diplomatic finesse will be required to reach an agreement, and making threats is not going to help at all.

In particular, telling Russia that we “can do it the easy way or the hard way” is not going to move the needle in the right direction.

Precisely, what would “the hard way” look like?

Would that mean greatly escalating the conflict in Ukraine?

Already, Trump is calling on the Europeans to substantially increase their financial support for the war…

Additionally, the U.S. President reiterated his call for European Union nations to step up their contributions to support Ukraine, calling for an extra $200 billion [USD].

I understand what Trump is trying to do.

He has repeatedly expressed his desire for “peace through strength”, and so he is attempting to get leverage on the Russians.

But issuing threats could threaten the temporary “window of opportunity” that we have right now.

In fact, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov just stressed that the “window of opportunity” that has opened up is “a small one”…

‘Compared to the hopelessness in every aspect of the previous White House chief (President Joe Biden), there is a window of opportunity today, albeit a small one,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told the Institute for U.S. and Canadian Studies in Moscow.

‘It’s therefore important to understand with what and whom we will have to deal, how best to build relations with Washington, how best to maximise opportunities and minimise risks.’

Hopefully, the two sides will sit down and talk very soon, because if an agreement does not happen in the coming months, there probably will not be one at all.

And when talks do commence, they will be quite tricky.

Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stated that the Russians must be allowed to keep all of the territory in Ukraine that they have conquered, and NATO forces will not be allowed on Ukrainian territory once the conflict is over…

Putin has repeatedly said that he is ready to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine but that Russia’s current control of 20% of Ukrainian territory will have to be accepted and that Ukraine must remain neutral.

On the other side, the Ukrainians have no intention of accepting what Russia is offering.

The Ukrainians want all of their territory back, and President Zelensky just told the world that he wants “a minimum of 200,000 European soldiers” on Ukrainian soil once the war has concluded…

Zelensky said “a minimum of 200,000 European soldiers will be required to secure Ukraine after any peace deal is reached.”

“A minimum, otherwise it’s nothing,” he said, emphasizing the need to keep Putin in check.

He also decried Russia’s demand to cut Ukraine’s army down to a fifth of its current size of 800,000 troops, saying that would leave the country defenseless.

The Russians will absolutely not accept NATO peacekeepers in Ukraine.

In fact, during a recent broadcast, Russian television host Vladimir Solovyov issued an ominous warning to “every mother in Europe”…

During a state TV broadcast, he furiously declared, “[The West] don’t understand that we can easily destroy all these countries, at least their capitals, which send peacekeepers….”, reports the Express US. “For us, these are not peacekeeping troops, but interventionists. And we will kill them all. The French, the English, the ******* Germans.”

Addressing his audience across 11 Russian time zones on Kremlin-controlled state TV, he said, “I just want you to translate my words carefully so that they reach the consciousness of every mother in Europe. You will send your sons and they will all be destroyed. And if that happens, thanks to your politicians, war will come to your homes.”

That is rather chilling.

Unfortunately, Solovyov represents what mainstream Russians are thinking.

The Russians will not accept NATO troops in Ukraine under any circumstances, and the Russians will not give any territory back.

And with each passing day, the Russians are taking even more territory.

It literally will take a major miracle to end this war.

But now Trump has his chance.  He is the master of “the art of the deal,” so let’s see what he can do.

I just hope that he realizes that the fate of our society hangs in the balance.

We’ve got one shot at this, and if an agreement cannot be reached, the consequences will be apocalyptic.

I know that everyone is focused on Trump’s domestic policies right now, and they are certainly important.

But if he doesn’t get negotiations with Russia right, the domestic policies that he is instituting aren’t really going to matter much at all.

Michael’s new book entitled “Why” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.

About the Author: Michael Snyder’s new book entitled “Why” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com. He has also written eight other books that are available on Amazon.com, including “Chaos,” “End Times,” “7 Year Apocalypse”, “Lost Prophecies Of The Future Of America,” “The Beginning Of The End,” and “Living A Life That Really Matters.”  When you purchase any of Michael’s books you help to support the work that he is doing.  You can also get his articles by email as soon as he publishes them by subscribing to his Substack newsletter.  Michael has published thousands of articles on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream, and The Most Important News, and he always freely and happily allows others to republish those articles on their own websites.  These are such troubled times, and people need hope.  John 3:16 tells us about the hope that God has given us through Jesus Christ: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”  If you have not already done so, we strongly urge you to invite Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior today.