Tom Wright
@thomaswright08
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Senior Fellow @BrookingsFP. contributing writer @TheAtlantic, Formerly Biden NSC, Author of All Measures Short of War, co-author of Aftershocks. Views my own.
Washington DC
Joined June 2008
After almost 3 years, today was my last day at the NSC. Nice to end w/ POTUS’s FP speech. I was v fortunate to work w/ an incredible group of public servants. Thank you @JakeSullivan46 for his leadership. Wishing the next team all the best as they navigate a challenging world.
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Correct. If it’s not a treaty ratified by the Senate everything can and likely will be reversed by a future Democratic president— de jure recognition of territory, limits on arms sales, force posture restrictions, etc.
Not clear what legal consequences this would have if it’s just a Presidential or a State Department policy statement. It would be like Trump recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital or Western Sahara as part of Maroc during his first term. Easily reversible after 2028 elections.
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Hard to understand why this is an open question. The risks of Zelenskyy coming to DC to close the deal are far too high, for reasons we all know well. Much better to let the negotiating teams do their work.
What I'm hearing from President Zelensky's team is that negotiations have been tough but they feel they are making actual progress in the talks with the Americans. As for Zelensky going to Washington, this has been something being considered in the president's office since last
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Stunning. And even more remarkable that Moscow is not on board with all of it. Seems like a sophisticated operation to pile pressure on Ukraine, reverse the admin’s recent positive evolution on policy issues j the war, and drive a massive wedge between Washington and Kyiv.
BREAKING: After talking to @SecRubio, @SenatorRounds announces that the 28 point plan was a Russian document, not a US document. Full @SenatorRounds: "@SecRubio did make a phone call to us this afternoon. I think he made it very clear to us that we are the recipients of a
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A deal that reflected realities on the ground would not compel Ukraine to give Russia territory it was unable to take. A deal that preserved Ukrainian sovereignty wouldn’t impose caps on the size of its military but contain no such restrictions for Russia. A plan to stop the
Any Ukraine-Russia peace plan has to: 1) Stop the killing while preserving Ukrainian sovereignty. 2) Be acceptable to both Russia and Ukraine. 3) Maximize the chances the war doesn't restart. Every criticism of the peace framework the administration is working on either
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Interesting piece on the acting secretary of defense.
A reminder that actual titles/roles are irrelevant in Trumpland “The Army leader’s visit was a profound split screen between a rising star and a novice Pentagon chief who has faced numerous scandals and lost support from some in the administration
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Just after his call with Vance.
BREAKING: President Zelenskyy addressed Ukrainians from outside his presidencial office in Kyiv and told them the county is facing “one of the most difficult moments in our history” as its biggest ally presses it into a deal with the nation that has fought to destroy it for 11
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This analysis is very much worth your time. One crucial point is that Russia has not signed on to this deal and is also likely to object to key elements, including the US security guarantee and some other aspects. Of course, Moscow will keep its head down and hope to maximize
The Witkoff-Dmitriev plan is even more amateurish than I imagined. It favours Russia although does contain elements that Russia will not like. Premature leaking means that it is no more than work in progress. Here is an annotated version (This is free). https://t.co/dNHlD2aMm1?
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.@thomaswright08 on Trump's latest Ukraine gambit: "This latest plan trades a policy that was making slow but real progress for one that threatens to become a strategic defeat." Must read @TheAtlantic
https://t.co/ykrqfwKRwi
theatlantic.com
The Trump administration had actually begun to make progress. Now it’s all in doubt.
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“Witkoff may have convinced himself that he could reproduce the deal that ended the war in Gaza. The circumstances there were fundamentally different. Israel had defeated Hamas and Iran on the battlefield. Hamas effectively acknowledged that. The United States helped to codify
Check out my piece this morning on Witkoff’s Ukraine plan and why it is a massive unforced error at a time when Trump was finally getting his policy on a sounder footing
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Axios has the 28 point plan and it is even worse than expected. Apart from Ukraine withdrawing from some territory it currently controls and caps on the size of the Ukrainian army, it also provides for Russia to join the G7/ G8 and for the US to profit from the sovereign assets.
axios.com
The full plan was obtained by Axios and verified by Ukrainian and U.S. officials.
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Talk about a 1990s mindset.
Vice President JD Vance on the Russia-Ukraine war: "Why don't you stop killing each other and start trading with one another? Why don't they actually engage in some commerce, travel between the two countries, engage in some sort of cultural exchange? And fundamentally, if we
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Check out my piece this morning on Witkoff’s Ukraine plan and why it is a massive unforced error at a time when Trump was finally getting his policy on a sounder footing
theatlantic.com
The Trump administration had actually begun to make progress. Now it’s all in doubt.
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The Trump administration had begun to make progress on Ukraine—but the peace plan that just leaked throws it all into doubt, @thomaswright08 argues.
theatlantic.com
The Trump administration had actually begun to make progress. Now it’s all in doubt.
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I’ve written up these thoughts from yesterday into a piece
theatlantic.com
The Trump administration had actually begun to make progress. Now it’s all in doubt.
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My new piece for @TheAtlantic on Witkoff’s Ukraine plan.
The Trump administration had begun to make progress on Ukraine—but the peace plan that just leaked throws it all into doubt, @thomaswright08 argues.
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What if America First seems to work? Thought-provoking @TheAtlantic article by @LowyInstitute Nonresident Fellow @thomaswright08.
theatlantic.com
“Might makes right” is still wrong for America, but opposing it just got harder.
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The reports from the White House on the latest Russia-Ukraine peace plans are deeply disturbing. It includes Ukraine ceding additional territory and fortifications to Russia and severe caps on the size of the Ukrainian army and its military more generally. It is nothing less than
ft.com
Proposal envisages major concessions by Kyiv and rollback of American military assistance
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I have a new piece with @TheAtlantic today on how Trump's America First foreign policy is more radical and more politically viable in his second term. He can plausibly argue that his bullying of allies has worked because they are so desperate to preserve relations with the US. He
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Trump’s “might makes right” foreign policy is bad for America—but to make that case despite short-term gains will require leveling with the American people about the troubled state of the world, @thomaswright08 argues:
theatlantic.com
“Might makes right” is still wrong for America, but opposing it just got harder.
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