Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) said Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin realizes the United States can “shut him down with our energy capabilities” amid a push from the Trump administration for an end to the war in Ukraine.
“I think Putin realizes too we could shut him down with our energy capabilities,” Burchett told NewsNation’s Blake Burman on “The Hill,” adding later that “under this new EPA we’ve got, I think — I think you’re going to see more — more production, and that we can fluctuate those markets.”
“And I think Putin completely realizes that he cannot do without oil. And so, I think there’s a lot behind the scenes going on,” he added.
On Monday, President Trump said he spoke with Putin in the wake of meetings at the White House with key European leaders and started arranging a potential bilateral meeting involving the Russian leader and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The president said the meeting between Putin and Zelensky would happen at a time and location not yet figured out. It would be the first time the two leaders had a face-to-face meeting since the start of the war in February 2022.
“After that meeting takes place, we will have a Trilat, which would be the two Presidents, plus myself,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform. “Again, this was a very good, early step for a War that has been going on for almost four years.”
Within the last week, Trump has met with both Putin and Zelensky on U.S. soil, and Trump and Zelensky had a much more even-tempered Oval Office meeting in front of TV cameras Monday than they did in February.
