Even former President Donald Trump is intensifying his calls for a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. He boldly asserts that the two countries are “days away from a deal.” Trump issued his comments at a bilateral meeting with the newly elected President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Rome. This meeting was their first in-person discussion since their fateful talk in the Oval Office. Meeting just before Pope Francis’ funeral, this urgency and significance added a prophetic edge to their discussions.
Earlier this week, Trump threw the two countries a lifeline with a proposal to stop the unprecedented trade war that has sprung up between the two nations. He remarked on optimism for dialogue to occur. He continued to call on both sides to come together at “very high levels” to get an agreement. Shortly afterwards, he shared an even more incendiary post on Truth Social that reinforced this sentiment. In it, he underscored that Russia and Ukraine are moving towards an agreement.
As expected, Trump has taken the most controversial position on the extremely sensitive topic of Crimea. He stated unequivocally, “Crimea is and will be Russian,” but insisted that Zelenskyy and others are well aware of the region’s historical claim. He criticized former President Barack Obama for allowing Russia to absorb Crimea with no pushback. In short, he believed that this earlier decision created a horrible precedent for what is now happening.
Following the meeting, Zelenskyy characterized the meeting as “good.” He noted its symbolic value but the greater historic value that might come from accomplishing “joint results.” Both leaders discussed the details of a prospective deal, which reportedly includes recognition of Crimea as under Russian control—a point Zelenskyy has previously labeled a red line.
Trump further asserted that “most of the major points are agreed to,” indicating that progress has been made in negotiations. He also raised concerns about recent military actions, stating, “There was no reason for Putin to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days.” In his recent conversations with Zelenskyy, he suggested that we should be doing more to take a longer-term strategic view of how we confront and combat Putin.
Vice President JD Vance shared Trump’s statements on social media platform X, amplifying the former president’s message regarding the urgent need for peace talks. Continuing to build bipartisan pressure on members of both parties to make the necessary compromises, this is the real strategy behind Trump’s inexplicably premature push for a resolution.
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