What Trump might do about Ukraine, Iran, China and international crises.

That argument aside, there are certainly some diplomatic opportunities for Mr. Trump to exploit, although history and ominous recent warnings suggest that if he doesn’t get what he wants, he could soften up his opponents and allies with threats of military action. (See: Iran, Greenland, Panama.)

Here’s a scorecard to use in the first few months.

In the fog of war, a potential Ukrainian deal

There is plenty of evidence that Mr Putin is eager to make a deal that would pull Russia out of a war that has already claimed nearly 200,000 lives and wounded more than half a million. But the presumption is that it must be sought outside the premises. Since a televised debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, Mr. Trump has been promising a deal — a deal “within 24 hours,” or before he is sworn in.

Now, unsurprisingly, it seems a bit complicated. Keith Kellogg, the special envoy to Ukraine, an 80-year-old retired general who served on Mr. Trump’s first National Security Council, told Fox recently: “Let’s put it at 100 days to make sure the resolution is strong, durable.” And this war will end so that we can stop the carnage. Mr. Trump said he would meet Mr. Putin “soon,” a notable timing, especially since Mr. Biden has not spoken to the Russian leader in nearly three years.

What might a deal look like? First, most Biden and Trump officials recognize that Russia will probably maintain its forces in the 20 percent of Ukraine it now occupies — part of a military force similar to the one it has suspended, but not ended. In the year 1953 Korean War. The hardest part of any deal is the security deal. Who is to guarantee that Mr. Putin will end the war, recruit and train new forces, learn from the mistakes of the past three years, and not use it to invade again?

Jake Sullivan, Biden’s national security adviser, argues that Biden’s team has spent the past year “putting the architecture in place” for his security. But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky doubts it’s all rumours. In the year Remembering that no one paid attention to the 1994 security pact Ukraine signed with the US, Britain and Russia, NATO membership is the only thing keeping Mr Putin from retaliating.