This is John Batchel, conversation with colleague Mary Kissel, Executive Vice President

Stevenson, Incorporated, former senior advisor to the Secretary of State about the challenge

of Ukraine conflict as the Trump administration prepares to take office.

Mary reminds that Mr. Trump, in his first term, was very confrontational to Vladimir Putin in Syria and

other parts of the world, and that there is no reason to expect that Mr. Trump will be anything

other than forthright in his challenge to Mr. Putin's attempt to overrun Ukraine.

How this translates on the battlefield and in the supply lines

and in NATO is open to question. But at this point, Mr. Trump is not backing off. He will get a deal

or he will press the matter as he did in his first term against Vladimir Putin's aggression.

Mary Kissel on the first term, Donald Trump and Donald Trump's regard,

disregard for Putin's bullying.

More of this later.

Well, it seems as if the incoming president-elect is already working on the issue,

having spoken to both the Russian and the Ukrainian sides, and making his wishes clear, although those calls, obviously were not made public, the content of those calls.

I think that the president has expended some political capital promising to solve this dispute.

He comes in with enormous credibility because when he was in office, the first time around,

President Trump was incredibly tough on Vladimir Putin.

He killed hundreds of Russians, Russian mercenaries in Syria, for instance.

He sanctioned Putin's inner circle. He liberated U.S. energy, which took away Putin's income. And he's very, I would say, 99.9% sure to do that

again. We worked with allies to punish Putin and exact consequences for bad behavior. I mean,

it's a very long list. And so I think Vladimir Putin knows that if he continues the fight after President Trump

is inaugurated again, there will be significant consequences.

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