A Baltic Pressure Campaign For President Trump To End Russia’s War

BusinessAerospace & DefenseA Baltic Pressure Campaign For President Trump To End Russia’s WarByDavid A. Deptula,Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write on defense, strategy, the profession of arms, and aerospace.Follow AuthorMay 31, 2026, 11:16am EDT--:-- / --:--This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.Netherlands F-35 aircraft and ships during Operation ‘Baltic Sentry’ Royal Netherlands NavyThe Strategic OpportunityPresident Trump has an opportunity to accelerate an end to Russia’s war against Ukraine. Drawing on the logic of his pressure campaign against Iran, he could initiate a Baltic air and maritime pressure campaign that incentivizes Vladimir Putin to move to the bargaining table.The United States need not choose between accepting stalemate, providing aid to Ukraine indefinitely, or escalating directly against Russian forces. It can instead lead NATO and EU partners in a disciplined sanctions-enforcement campaign in the Baltic Sea that takes action on the vessels, cargoes, port services, insurance arrangements, and financial networks that are sustaining Russia’s war machine.That is the central strategic point: a Baltic Sea pressure campaign would give Washington a coercive instrument that is lawful, coalition-based, scalable, and tied directly to negotiations. It would not replace continued military support to Ukraine. It would reinforce it by adding pressure against the maritime revenue system that allows Moscow to absorb battlefield losses and keep fighting despite extraordinary costs.A Baltic Sea campaign built around air and naval power, sanctions enforcement, allied surveillance, port-state controls, and legal discipline would make the price of continued aggression less tolerable for Russia than the price of serious negotiations. It would give the President a practical alternative to both stalemate and direct military escalation.Why the...