“When the Trump team starts engaging in these kinds of discussions, they will find that getting Putin to abandon his goal of subjugating all of Ukraine will be the hardest thing in this process. Trump will need to continue aid to Ukraine if he is serious about getting Putin to end the fighting. We will have movement toward a negotiated settlement only if Ukraine acquires greater capabilities to inflict damage inside Russia. Until that happens, Putin has very little incentive to abandon his strategy of making gradual gains on the battlefield and just waiting for the West to abandon support. Trump may seek to change Putin's calculus on Ukraine by countering the Kremlin's interests in other regions like the Arctic, Middle East, Africa or targeting his allies like Iran and North Korea. What we may see from from Trump is a broadening of the bargaining game, taking it to other areas to send more and more messages to Putin.”
Political science professor at San Diego State University who focuses on Russia and Ukraine