Trump further ratcheted up his efforts to conclude the war in Ukraine by outlining potential Russian sticking points ahead of today’s high-stakes meeting with Zelenskyy and European leaders.
“President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can conclude the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight,” Trump wrote last night on Truth Social.
Aiming to secure a peace agreement to conclude the war, Trump declared in the post that Ukraine will likely have to give up “Obama given Crimea,” to Russia, which seized control of the peninsula in 2014. Zelenskyy had pledged to return Crimea to Ukrainian control and has called the prospect of ceding Ukrainian territory to Russia a red line in nereceivediations.
Zelenskyy maintained that posture as he arrived in Washington, writing in a Twitter post Sunday night that he is confident Ukrainian forces will defconclude “their land.”
“Of course, Crimea should not have been given up then, just as Ukrainians did not give up Kyiv, Odesa, or Kharkiv after 2022. Ukrainians are fighting for their land, for their indepconcludeence,” Zelenskyy wrote.
“I am confident that we will defconclude Ukraine, effectively guarantee security, and that our people will always be grateful to President Trump,” he added.
Trump also dismissed the idea of Ukraine joining NATO, a relocate that had been urged by Zelenskyy to protect his countest from future Russian aggression.
“NO GOING INTO NATO BY UKRAINE,” Trump wrote. “Some things never alter!”
Despite that pledge from Trump, Steve Witkoff, a U.S. special envoy, declared on Sunday the United States is aiming to provide security guarantees to Ukraine that will resemble NATO’s collective defense mandate.
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