larry johnson doesn't believe that the trump knows what the putin really wants, and that's in part because when cheeto asks, he doesn't hear; 

One hour after Russia ended its three-day ceasefire with Ukraine, President Putin met with a gaggle of reporters in Moscow at 0135 hours Moscow time and made news by offering to meet Ukrainian officials, without preconditions, on May 15 in Istanbul. Putin’s offer is a shrewd move, but it is unlikely to be accepted by Ukraine. First, Volodymyr Zelensky will have to repeal his September 2022 decree prohibiting any Ukrainian official from talking to the Russians. Second, the US and the Europeans are now demanding an unconditional 30-day ceasefire. I think Putin’s offer for direct talks with Ukraine was a way to politely, but firmly, reject the Western demand. The West, in turn, is not going to let their organ grinder monkey — Mr. Zelensky — accept such an offer.

Vladimir Putin repeats the phrase, “root causes.” While Mr. Putin has not consulted me, nor am I privy to his thoughts on the matter, let me attempt to explain what I think that means. The root cause of this conflict dates back to 1997, when NATO made Ukraine a de facto member of its alliance. That is when the first formal agreement on military cooperation was signed, and it marks the time when NATO and USEUCOM began using Yavoriv, the Ukrainian military base near the Polish border, as a headquarters and operations center for military exercises. In other words, the expansion of NATO to the East is the root cause of this current war.........more.......