Trump’s Proposed Russia Deal Alarms NATO as Former Commander Warns Putin Seeks European Influence

President Donald Trump’s effort to reach an agreement with Moscow to end the war in Ukraine — and potentially redefine European security — has unsettled NATO allies. A former top alliance commander told News Outlet that Russian President Vladimir Putin has long pursued a strategy of dividing the world into competing spheres of influence.

The warning came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appeared to reject what he described as a possible “Yalta 2.0.” At the same time, NATO members debated whether to engage directly with Putin as delegations prepared for negotiations in Abu Dhabi on Nov. 10-11.

Retired Gen. Philip Breedlove, who previously served as Supreme Allied Commander Europe, said Putin’s goals reach well beyond Ukraine and are part of a broader vision for dividing power among the world’s major powers.

“Putin has a plan for the world, and he has pushed that plan on leaders several times,” Breedlove said. “He talks about it and he writes about it.”

Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, front row from left, and Jonas Gahr Støre, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Ursula von der Leyen, Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof, and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, back row from left, stand together in the chancellery in Berlin, Germany, on Dec. 15, 2025. (Markus Schreiber, Pool/AP)

Trump indicated Thursday that a possible agreement with Moscow could cover far more than an end to Russia’s nearly five-year war in Ukraine.

“It’s going to be a big agreement, and it’s going to involve more than Ukraine… I could even say it might involve all of Europe,” Trump told reporters after meeting with Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev at the White House.

“It’s going to be a big, beautiful agreement, and everyone’s going to be thrilled,” Trump said.

Breedlove said Putin has repeatedly advanced the idea of dividing global influence among Russia, China and the United States.

“The plan is three spheres of influence whereby China controls the Far East, Russia controls Europe, and America controls the Western Hemisphere. I do not expect there’s going to be a lot of cooperation from the countries of Europe,” he said.

“The Western world is waiting to see what this big plan is, and they are very concerned because it is about them,” Breedlove added.

President Donald Trump (R) and Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) hold a meeting at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson on August 15, 2025 in Anchorage, Alaska. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Zelenskyy also cautioned Friday against repeating the 1945 Yalta Conference, when Allied leaders negotiated the postwar order in Europe before the Soviet Union tightened its control over Eastern Europe.

“We don’t want to have Yalta 2.0,” the Ukrainian president told CNN. “We don’t want to be divided by Russia,” he said, adding, “For me, it’s not simple and it can be dangerous.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Sunday that talks about Europe’s future after the Ukraine war were already taking place.

“It’s one of the key topics that’s been raised repeatedly in every conversation, anytime negotiations have been discussed,” Rubio told reporters before traveling to Paris for a G7 meeting.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio talks to reporters at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, on Friday, April 4. (Jacquelyn Martin/Pool/AP)

“So I think that’s what the president is alluding to, is that there’s been some advances made and what that architecture could look like post-conflict. We obviously have to get past the conflict to get to that point,” Rubio said, clarifying Trump’s remarks.

Breedlove questioned whether European governments and Ukraine would accept a wider agreement negotiated without their participation.

“I do expect that when we get a peek under the hood of what Mr. Putin and Mr. Trump have devised that there may be European partners and allies to include Ukraine that may or may not be enthralled with the proposed solution.”

“We have always said nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine,” Breedlove said.

“Neither have we heard anything about the EU or NATO being in this conversation. And yet the EU, NATO and Ukraine are central and the heart of the matter that apparently is going to be discussed.”

Tensions appeared to rise further after Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre held a rare 90-minute phone call with Putin on Oct. 27, according to reports.

A composite image shows Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (R) as peace talks continue. (Valery Sharifulin/Pool/AFP via Getty Images; Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen criticized the separate European diplomatic efforts.

“I think Europe should stick together rather than going solo,” she said, while Breedlove defended the outreach.

“The two calls that recently took place between Northern leaders in the NATO alliance and Russia, I don’t think that they’re out of place at all,” he said. “I think they’re entirely appropriate.”

“The great powers of Europe are getting very concerned that someone is dealing with their security without including them in the conversation,” he added.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot confirmed Sunday that France would join the negotiations in Abu Dhabi.

“The Europeans will be well represented; France will be in Abu Dhabi to take part in these discussions,” Barrot said, according to Reuters.

President Donald Trump speaks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as they meet to negotiate for an end to the war in Ukraine, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, U.S., August 15, 2025.  (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

Breedlove warned that any agreement forcing European countries to weaken their security to satisfy Moscow would encounter strong opposition.

“If the maximalist demands of Russia remain intact and in order to find peace, all the rest of Europe has to give up its security, sacrifice its security, make itself more susceptible to Russian attack, then this is not going to go well,” he said.

“Putin has never been a partner for peace in Ukraine. Putin is not now a partner for peace in Ukraine.”

“The EU nations, the NATO nations, and Ukraine are not going to sign up to a plan that suggests that Russia will be able to once again amass its armies, march across borders and intervene in its neighbors’ internal business.”

“We need to understand that we are in a war. Mr. Putin is at war with the West,” he warned.