Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has pledged to swiftly negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine should he win the presidency in November. A peace that protects Ukraine’s democratic sovereignty and secures Russian support is a noble objective. The problem is that just as Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky is now adopting idiotic diplomacy toward the United States, Trump’s strategy to end the war in Ukraine is also idiotic.

The problem is threefold. First, Trump does not understand that Russia’s current objectives in Ukraine are unacceptable to Ukraine, European security, and U.S. interests. Second, he is dancing to Russian President Vladimir Putin‘s nuclear escalation waltz. Third, Putin does not presently respect Trump.