We are all in the people business. Always have been, and likely always will be.
Being acutely aware of this fact and leveraging it to our individual benefit – and to the advantage of our community, team, or country – is a key part of negotiating. It’s how we get ahead.
This past week, I watched as two strong men, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, President of Russia, and Donald J. Trump, President of the United States of America, met face to face and wasted no time getting down to business. The former KGB agent has demonstrated that he possesses the capacity for extreme violence and that when faced with weakness, he will move decisively to his advantage.
Our businessman President, Donald J. Trump, has shown his considerable strength as well, quickly dealing with Iran in such a way that they didn’t even consider a counterattack. If you are not capable of great violence, you cannot truly call yourself peaceful.
Their fighter and our fighter met at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska. One wants what he wants. The other wants peace and sees the money and lives squandered on the conflict as a waste.
Ever the showman, Trump arranged for a flyover by B-2 and F-35 fighter jets. The press prattled on about this and speculated on why, but the real reason was obvious. How do you send a subtle message that you’re dealing with the big dog, and do it with a smile? Skywriters would be a little gauche for even President Trump, but that stealth bomber, in all its glory, certainly sent a clear message.
Bureaucrats the world over were shocked at the brevity of the meeting. Putin has kept up the best Soviet tradition of marathon speeches and has proven that he can speak for hours. Trump can turn an hour interview into a half-day event.
These two provided the photo opportunity for the world press, shook hands, and dove straight in. Right down to business. The meeting lasted for less than three hours. There is no doubt that both men and their respective teams were superbly prepared.
Both have been fairly tight-lipped about details, but have praised the initiative and the willingness of the other to facilitate a move to peace. Critics of President Trump says he rushed the meeting to make his tee time the next morning. I don’t think so.
They did what they had to do, so they could each get on with governing their respective countries.
I watched both Trump’s synopsis of the meeting and Putin’s presser. I know enough of the Russian language to understand the subtle nuances that could be added. Putin’s speech was rapid and calm, and he was true to form; and there were no nuanced insults.
Both men were cautiously optimistic. This is the best news we have had regarding a conflict of which the entire world has grown weary.
Putin and Trump could not be more different, but the one key commonality they have is dealing with the people involved, including each other. They both arrived at their current positions by leveraging people, projecting strength, and a careful application of power.
Two men, each leveraging for peace, and doing it from a position of power. At the next meeting, I’m told, they’ll be bringing in a comedian. Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy – a comedian before entering politics – is the President of Ukraine.
He did very well in the beginning of the conflict, but his popularity has waned over the past year. The world hopes Zelenskyy recognizes the seriousness of his position. He’s made some monumental blunders lately with other world leaders, and all the begging for military hardware leaves him weak and negotiating from behind.
I hope he joins the peace process with an eye for getting something done because he’s certainly not arriving with power or presence, but he may, once again, try to upstage two men who clearly have it all over him.
Trump and Putin will be prepared; prepared for diplomacy; prepared for peace; prepared for war; but who knows with Zelenskyy? The chess pieces in play are people, projection and power. Life and death are hanging in the balance.
Only time will tell.
