Lithuania's Nauseda Says Putin Can't Win the War With Ukraine

Summary

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda discusses the Ukraine war, arguing Russia cannot win and that battlefield drone warfare is shifting public opinion in Russia. He sees Trump's peace push as helpful but insists Moscow must first recognize it cannot prevail. On other topics, he highlights the need for Europe to speak with one voice, the importance of Hormuz stability for energy prices, the EU's push to reduce economic dependency on China, and Lithuania's own defense spending and renewable energy progress.

• Nauseda says Ukraine is prevailing using drone warfare and targeting Russian infrastructure, causing the Russian population to feel the war directly.
• He believes Russian President Putin cannot win the war and should seek compromise; peace negotiations need Russia to show willingness.
• He welcomes Trump's peace efforts but stresses Europe must coordinate a single voice and learn from past failed bilateral talks with Moscow.
• Nauseda questions whether EU sanctions and economic leverage alone are enough to force Russia to negotiate.
• On the Israel-Iran conflict, he emphasizes securing the Strait of Hormuz for stable maritime traffic, oil prices and inflation, and says Europe must reduce fossil fuel dependence long-term.
• He says EU-China relations suffer from a huge trade deficit; the priority is to reduce dependencies, boost competitiveness, and seek new markets with the US and like-minded countries.
• Lithuania is spending 5.4% of GDP on defense and receiving positive signals from Washington about US troop presence.
• Lithuania now covers 73% of energy needs from renewables and aims for 100% by 2030.