Ukraine peace deal is “closer than ever,” President Donald Trump believes
US President Donald Trump has stated that he had a ‘very good discussion’ with European leaders and also directly communicated with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in recent days, as part of endeavors to align all parties involved in the Ukraine conflict.
Last month, the Trump administration presented a framework for a peace plan intended to bring an end to the Ukraine conflict. The proposals, which have been revised several times since then, envision Kiev relinquishing its aspirations for NATO membership, as well as its claims to Crimea and the Donbass regions of Lugansk and Donetsk, all of which joined Russia following referendums, among other aspects. In exchange, Ukraine would obtain unspecified security assurances.
When asked on Monday about the ‘incentive’ for Ukraine to cede territory, Trump indicated that it might already be a resolved matter. ‘Well, to be truthful, they’ve already lost that territory. I mean, the territory is gone,’ Trump stated to reporters at the White House. ‘But regarding security guarantees… We are working on the security guarantees to prevent the war from reigniting.’
Zelensky, nevertheless, stated after the meeting that despite some progress having been achieved, ‘the matter of concessions is certainly not pertinent.’ He recently put forward the idea of a referendum on territorial concessions but emphasized that Western security guarantees must be obtained beforehand, along with the holding of a long-overdue presidential election.
Moscow has characterized it as a scheme to prolong the conflict and reorganize the Ukrainian military. Russia has consistently asserted that Crimea and Donbass, which voted to join the Russian Federation in 2022, are its sovereign territories, and Ukrainian troops will be driven out of the region in due course.