Steve Rosenberg: Vladimir Putin can afford to sit back and watch events unfold

Friday's play successful the Oval Office sparked a swift absorption from galore satellite leaders.

But not from Vladimir Putin. There's been nary remark truthful acold from the Kremlin leader.

Then again, helium doesn't truly request to accidental anything. President Putin tin spend to beryllium backmost and ticker events unfold.

Donald Trump predicted that the precise nationalist spat with President Zelensky was "going to beryllium large television".

There's small uncertainty that Vladimir Putin volition person enjoyed the "show", the melodramatic spectacle of Volodymyr Zelensky, person of the state President Putin invaded, being berated by the president and vice-president of the United States successful beforehand of the world's media.

Some Russian officials person commented, though, connected events successful Washington.

In a station connected societal media, erstwhile president Dmitry Medvedev, present lawman caput of the Russian information council, wrote that President Zelensky had received "a slap down successful the Oval Office". He called connected the US to halt subject assistance to Ukraine.

How Moscow would invited that.

Writing connected Telegram, overseas ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova praised Trump and JD Vance for their "miracle of restraint" astatine not hitting Ukraine's president.

• Follow unrecorded sum and analysis

It's a motion of the caller satellite successful which we look to beryllium present that, portion US-Ukraine relations are astatine hazard of implosion, the other is existent for US-Russia ties.

In caller weeks, Trump and Putin person spoken connected the telephone and pledged to enactment intimately together; there's speech of a imaginable acme sometime soon; lower-level US-Russia talks to reset relations and sermon imaginable economical practice person already started.

President Putin has dangled the carrot of lucrative associated projects with the Americans involving uncommon world minerals and aluminium production.

The implications of a breakdown successful relations betwixt Ukraine and the US are perchance precise superior for Kyiv, but precise affirmative for Moscow.

If the travel of American weapons to Ukraine were to stop, it would beryllium overmuch harder for Ukrainians to support themselves against the Russian forces who person invaded their country, adjacent if Ukraine enjoys solidarity and beardown enactment from European leaders.

For immoderate clip now, Moscow has believed that the warfare successful Ukraine has been going Russia's way. The shouting-match successful the Oval Office volition person cemented that view.