Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin said Sunday that President Donald Trump is the only one who has the ability to pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin to negotiate to end the war with Ukraine.
“Putin knows the one person that can truly change the war is the United States,” Mullin told co-anchor Jonathan Karl on ABC News’ “This Week.” “If we went all-in for Ukraine, if we went all-in with the resources we have, from air superiority to the weapons that we can deploy to Ukraine, Putin knows at that point he would be in an extremely negative position.”
“I think that being the opportunity for President Trump to talk to Putin and say, ‘Listen, we want to end the war. We don’t want to have to engage more, but we’re not going to allow you to move forward. So let’s negotiate a peace deal here, or you’re going to force our hand to be farther involved.'”
Trump announced via social media on Wednesday that his team would begin negotiations with Putin to end the nearly 3-year-long war. Trump said he and Putin discussed an end to the war in which Ukraine cedes territory captured by Russia and gives up its ambitions to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), two major concessions for Ukraine.
Many world leaders argue Trump has given into Putin’s demands before negotiations begin. Trump added that he informed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy about his call with Putin after it concluded.
Trump originally made no mention of whether Ukraine would be involved in negotiations, but later said that they would “of course” be involved.
National security adviser Mike Waltz, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff will travel to Saudi Arabia this week, a source familiar with the matter told ABC News.
Waltz, Rubio and Witkoff are expected to meet with top Russian officials, multiple sources familiar with the matter told ABC News. The specific timing of the trip is not clear, and it is unclear whether Ukraine will be involved in the talks.
Mullin said he is looking for a scenario in which both parties are present at the negotiating table.
“I know the negotiations are moving forward, and we want to have Ukraine and Russia both at the table, and I think the negotiations go better if both sides are looking for a peace deal, because they’re at a neutral position,” Mullin said.
Mullin praised Trump’s negotiation tactics, despite continuing backlash.
“What President Trump is doing here is actually really smart. He’s meeting with Zelenskyy. He’s having conversations with him. You’re seeing [Secretary of State Marco] Rubio. You saw, you saw that the senators and representatives both met with Zelenskyy while they were in Munich, and you’re seeing them also meeting with Putin in Saudi Arabia,” Mullin said. “What that is doing, Jon, is, that’s putting both people, getting them in separate rooms, talking about what they will accept, and then finding out a negotiation path forward before you bring them to the table. A lot of times, bring people to the table too fast, Jon, it’ll blow up.”
Mullin also defended Elon Musk’s efforts to overhaul the federal government.
The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) began directing mass layoffs after their deferred resignation program ended on Feb. 12. Initially, DOGE has its sights set on probationary employees, individuals with only a couple of years of service, which is nearly 200,000 government workers.
“Anytime you take over a situation, like Elon Musk has had many opportunities and many experiences with taking over businesses, you have to start cutting some of the fat. And unfortunately, the number one expense we have in the United States government right now is payroll,” Mullin said.
Karl noted that the largest expenses in the federal budget are for entitlement programs like Medicare and Social Security.
Musk has promised transparency in his actions, and many Democratic lawmakers have called for him to testify in front of Congress. Whether he does should be left to Trump, Mullin said.
“That’s up to President Trump. Keep in mind, President Trump put in Musk to be a consultant, just like many successful corporations around the world, including myself, that have hired consultants to come in and look at it from an unbiased perspective,” Mullin said.
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