Russian President Vladimir Putin is making the mistake of giving President Donald Trump the “back of the hand” on ceasefire negotiations, former Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert Wilkie said on Newsmax Saturday. 

“The last person you want to do that to is Donald Trump,” Wilkie, who now chairs the Center for National Security at the America First Policy Institute, said on Newsmax’s “Wake Up America Weekend.” “Since President Trump offered that ceasefire, Russian attacks have increased by over 50%. They’re launching larger, more effective drone strikes. They just launched a ballistic missile that killed, I think, 18 civilians today. So they’re ramping up their attacks against the civilian infrastructure.”

He added that he is sure envoys are telling Putin that he does not have much time left before stopping the attacks and coming to the negotiation table. 

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