US President Donald Trump on Sunday (local time) pushed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to accept a peace deal in the ongoing war against Russia, saying he has the power to end the war almost immediately, or he can continue to fight on.
Taking to Truth Social, Trump also ruled out reclaiming Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in 2014, and Ukraine’s inclusion in the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), something that Russia has opposed for long.
“President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight. Remember how it started. No getting back Obama given Crimea (12 years ago, without a shot being fired!), and NO GOING INTO NATO BY UKRAINE. Some things never change!!!" he said.
Trump referenced the annexation of Crimea by Russia in 2014, which happened during the Obama administration. During that time, a pro-Russian president was ousted by Ukraine’s parliament after he rejected an EU association deal. Russia saw the ousting as a Western-backed coup and annexed Crimea to protect ethnic Russians and Russian interests. On March 21, Russia completed the legal integration of Crimea.
Trump is set to host Zelenskyy and European leaders for a meeting in Washington on Monday. “Big day at the White House tomorrow. Never had so many European Leaders at one time. My great honor to host them!!!" he said on Truth Social.
The US President has called on Zelenskyy to strike a deal that ensures a permanent peace in Ukraine after hosting Russian President Vladimir Putin for talks in Alaska last week. He also cited “BIG PROGRESS ON RUSSIA" in a social media post without specifying what this might be.
On Friday, Trump said Ukraine should make a deal to end the war because “Russia is a very big power, and they’re not." He also conveyed to Zelenskyy about Putin’s offer to freeze most front lines if Ukraine ceded all of Donetsk, which Zelenskyy declined.
Meanwhile, Trump’s top envoy Steve Witkoff said Putin agreed to allow “robust security guarantees" for Ukraine from the United States as part of a potential peace deal during his summit with President Donald Trump. He said Putin also agreed to “legislative enshrinement" by Russia to not go into any other territory, in Ukraine or elsewhere in Europe.
Trump originally said he was trying to secure an immediate ceasefire during his summit with Putin. He later changed course and agreed with Russia’s position that peace negotiations could come without a ceasefire, an idea dismissed by some of Ukraine’s European allies.
