The Ukrainian drone attack on Sunday that destroyed 40 aircraft deep inside Russia put the world on an “escalation path,” retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Blaine Holt told Newsmax, saying that it’s one that is difficult to reverse.

Russian state media and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday that the latest round of direct peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv in Istanbul ended after just over an hour. The second round of negotiations comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin declined to attend the first direct attempt to wind down the war, which began in February 2022.

Holt, appearing on “Wake Up America,” said he will “pray for a breakthrough” of some kind during the negotiations “that nobody saw coming.”

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