US diplomat and entrepreneur Gregory Sleaton, in a blitz interview with RBC-Ukraine, expressed the view that US President Donald Trump is “finally starting to realize” Ukraine’s real successes on the battlefield and beyond. According to Sleaton, although Russia still fields a significantly larger army and is a much bigger country, Kyiv has delivered “incredible results” that cannot be ignored even in the White House. The diplomat stressed that this understanding is not yet complete, but he sees its emergence as a significant shift in how the Ukrainian conflict is perceived in the president’s inner circle.
A shift in perception: what Sleaton says
In his conversation with journalists, Sleaton emphasized that, in his observation, Trump shapes his position under the influence of his closest circle. “So I hope that more and more people will tell him the truth about the fact that Ukraine is a loyal and reliable partner that we must defend,” the diplomat stated. His words suggest that a new narrative is taking shape in American political circles, one in which Ukraine is viewed not as a burden but as a strategic ally whose resilience directly affects the security of the entire Western world.
Laura Loomer’s visit and a turn in public rhetoric
Particular attention in the interview is given to the mention of Laura Loomer’s unexpected visit to Ukraine — a US blogger who, according to Sleaton, had long been “a staunch apologist for Russian dictator Vladimir Putin” and supported him in every way. The diplomat noted that Loomer “sharply changed her attitude toward Russia” and, in his assessment, “finally realized that she had been deceived by pro-Kremlin propaganda.” Sleaton directly linked this case to a broader trend: “Just like in the case of Tucker Carlson and many others who spread this narrative. But more and more such people are starting to understand that what they believed before was merely propaganda and did not correspond to reality.”
The collapse of the pro-Kremlin narrative in the American mainstream
Sleaton described a process he called the “collapse” of the previously dominant narrative in parts of American media and the blogosphere, namely the claim that Ukraine was allegedly waging a “mad war” against Russia and that Kyiv was incapable of independent military success. In his words, an increasing number of public figures who had previously broadcast the pro-Kremlin line are revising their positions after getting to know the situation firsthand on the ground. The diplomat considers this a “very favorable development” for Ukraine, because a change in the rhetoric of influential figures around Trump is capable of influencing decision-making at the highest level.
Context: diplomatic pressure and parallel tracks
Sleaton’s remarks came against the backdrop of active diplomatic activity around the Ukrainian issue. Earlier, RBC-Ukraine reported on the Kremlin’s intention to resolve the Ukraine question with Trump in a “buddy-like” manner, as well as on the fact that the head of the CIA was sent to Moscow with specific tasks, including assignments related to Ukraine. These parallel tracks — from informal contacts to official intelligence missions — form a multi-layered picture in which, in Sleaton’s assessment, Ukraine is gradually cementing its status as a “reliable partner” in the eyes of US leadership.
Contradictory data
It should be noted that Sleaton’s assessment is the expert opinion of a single diplomat, not an official statement by the White House or the US State Department. The provided sources contain no direct confirmation that the Trump administration has formally revised its policy toward Ukraine. Moreover, Sleaton himself qualifies that Trump does not “fully” understand the situation and that Russia retains a significant military advantage. Thus, there remains a gap between the diplomat’s optimistic interpretation and the actual state of US foreign policy, one that may be exaggerated within the framework of a blitz interview. At the same time, the very fact of a public revision of positions by figures such as Laura Loomer and Tucker Carlson is confirmed in the source as an event that has taken place, although the details of their statements and the degree of their influence on Washington’s policy are not disclosed in this material.
