US President Donald Trump questioned Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s stance on Crimea and pressured him to accept a peace deal that involves ceding Ukrainian territory to Russia.
This comes as the Trump administration presented a seven-point peace plan described as a “final offer” to Ukraine, which includes US de jure recognition of Crimea as Russian territory and de facto acknowledgment of Russian control over occupied parts of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia oblasts.
President Zelenskyy rejected these conditions, insisting on a full, unconditional ceasefire before any negotiations on territorial or political terms could take place.
In a recent social media post on Truth Social, Trump criticized what he called Zelenskyy’s “inflammatory statements” regarding Ukraine’s refusal to legally recognize Russian control of Crimea, suggesting such rhetoric undermines current peace efforts.
“Nobody is asking Zelenskyy to recognize Crimea as Russian Territory but, if he wants Crimea, why didn’t they fight for it eleven years ago when it was handed over to Russia without a shot being fired?” Trump wrote.
The US president argued that the situation in Ukraine is “dire” and presented Zelenskyy with what he framed as two options: accept peace now or continue fighting for three more years and potentially “lose the entire country.”
Trump emphasized humanitarian concerns, stating he wants to “save, on average, five thousand Russian and Ukrainian soldiers a week, who are dying for no reason whatsoever.”
Trump said the parties are “very close to an agreement,” but he implied Zelenskyy lacks leverage in the negotiations.
The US expected Ukraine’s response to these proposals during a 23 April meeting between American, Ukrainian, and European officials in London. However, diplomatic complications arose when US Secretary of State Marco Rubio canceled his London trip, prompting foreign ministers from Britain, France, and Germany to postpone their planned meeting as well.
Earlier, US Vice President JD Vance stated, “There’s going to have to be some territorial swaps.” Vance emphasized that to stop the fighting, both sides need to “put down their weapons, freeze this thing and get on with the business of actually building a better Russia and a better Ukraine.”
Ukrainian Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko also confirmed that while Ukraine remains ready for negotiations and willing to end the war, the country would reject any “frozen conflict disguised as peace” and would never acknowledge Russian occupation of Crimea.
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