US President Donald Trump hopes Ukraine and Russia “will make a deal this week” and later do “big business” with the US and “make a fortune.”
However, according to Trump’s post on Truth Social, no specific details about the potential agreement were provided.
During his presidential campaign, Trump famously claimed he could resolve the conflict within 24 hours of taking office. As of April 2025, Trump’s peace efforts did not succeed in ending the war or achieving a stable settlement.
The US previously attempted to broker a 30-day ceasefire, which Ukraine accepted, but Russia declined. Russia maintained its demands, showing little interest in de-escalation, while Ukraine remains resistant to making significant concessions.
Trump expressed growing frustration with the stalled peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, indicating that the United States might withdraw from its mediation efforts if no progress is achieved soon.
Shortly before this statement, Trump had posted, “The Golden Rule of negotiation and success: whoever has the gold makes the rules.” However, it is unclear whether this post relates to the Ukraine-Russia negotiations.
Bloomberg, citing European officials familiar with the matter, reported that the US is proposing to essentially freeze the war, with occupied Ukrainian territories remaining under Russian control.
The territories in question include the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts. Russia does not even fully occupy some parts of these oblasts, and Ukraine refuses to recognize them as Russian.
Easter ceasefire failure
Recent ceasefire efforts also showed limited success. According to the Ukrainian Presidential Office, Ukraine expressed its willingness to accept a US proposal for an immediate 30-day ceasefire during talks in Saudi Arabia on 11 March. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed Kyiv’s readiness for a ceasefire, emphasizing that it would only be effective with Russian agreement.
Russian President Vladimir Putin responded that Moscow agreed with proposals to cease hostilities but noted certain issues still required discussion. While both sides subsequently agreed to stop striking energy infrastructure, Russia reportedly continued attacks on both energy facilities and civilian targets.
During the Easter holiday, Putin announced a temporary cessation of combat operations from 19 to 21 April. Zelenskyy responded that Ukraine would mirror Russia’s actions, offering “silence in response to silence, strikes in defense against strikes.”
Despite this arrangement, Ukrainian authorities recorded over 2,000 ceasefire violations by Russian forces on 20 April alone. Despite these violations, no air raid sirens were heard across Ukraine that day.
However, Ukrainian forces observed no sign of the promised truce along nearly any sector of the front.
Zelenskyy criticized Russia for attempting to create a “general impression of a ceasefire” while continuing isolated attacks.
He reiterated building on this limited de-escalation by refraining from long-range drone and missile strikes on civilian infrastructure for at least 30 days, with the possibility of extension.
