President Trump’s position among Ukrainians is essentially on life support. However, many cheered on one statement he made on Saturday, questioning why the Russian Ukrainian president continues Ukraine with Pamel, and President Voladimir V. Putin questioning whether the US is trying to negotiate peace.
“I think maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just smacking me,” Trump wrote about the true society after meeting Zelensky on the sidelines at Pope Francis’ funeral.
The events of the day were a kind of victory for Zelensky and Ukraine at a critical period in the war that began with a full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022. With this proposal, Kiev abandons its desire to join NATO, offering only vague security guarantees to Ukraine, confirming that the US officially recognizes Crimea as a Russian. Ukraine refused the deal. This was described as the Trump administration’s final offer.
But now, Ukraine is shining a small, faint glow of hope that Trump will not reel Ukraine into a biased peace plan. It first appeared in fallout from a massive Russian missile attack on the Ukrainian capital, which killed 12 people and injured nearly 90 people. “Vladimir, stop!” Trump posted to the True Society in Putin’s rare accusation.
And hope grew slightly on Saturday, when Zelensky was able to compete with Rome’s Trump for about 15 minutes. Photos released by the Ukrainian government showed two men sitting in chairs, leaning against each other, talking to each other like equality. The tragic meeting at the oval office in late February showed that Zelenkey ended with a sudden departure from the White House and a temporary freeze of all US aid.
The photos from Rome were “extraordinary,” said Voldimi Dubovik, director of the International Studies Centre at Odesa II Mechnikov National University. He added that it’s good for Zelensky to spend time alone with Trump.
“Trump’s team has been touching too much on the Kremlin and its story points recently, so I think it would have been useful to allow Kiev to present their perspective directly to Trump. Just as Trump will understand the concerns of a bit better Ukraine now,” Dubovik said.
Some Ukrainians interviewed in Kiev on Sunday confirmed that Trump can change his mind at a fierce speed. But they were comforted by the fact that the White House called Saturday’s conversation a “very productive argument.”
Ole Karas, 40, called the photos of Trump and Zelensky “surprising” and was collecting donations to buy drones outside the memorial to fallen soldiers.
“Maybe Trump was caught up in something obvious with Putin,” Karas said, adding that Russian leaders are unreliable. As he stood in front of thousands of flags planted in the ground, each marking a dead soldier, Mr. Crows said: “You should bring Trump here. Let him see this place.
Even small things like the short meeting between Trump and Zelensky felt like a big change. Since taking office, the Trump administration has sometimes appeared to be almost recruited by Putin, a sharp reversal in US policy. And Trump has kept his dislike for Ukrainian leaders a secret.
So Trump’s statement on the truth society after the meeting seemed to be something like a proof and what they have been saying for years to many in Ukraine. Putin may not be telling the truth.
Ukraine has been fighting Russia in the eastern Donbas region since 2014, and Putin has violated several peace deals aimed at ending violence there. Russian leaders also argued that they would not immediately increase the wider invasion of Ukraine until the moment the tanks began a full-scale invasion across the border in 2022.
That history is why the Ukrainian government argued that peace agreements in this war with Russia must include strong security guarantees, and why they wanted NATO membership, even if that dream was pending.
Ukrainians now refute the Trump administration’s peace plan, which the US offers backing up in search of European peacekeeping forces. In a social media post after Saturday’s meeting, Zelensky didn’t go into detail about his conversation with Trump, but said he spoke about “a complete and unconditional ceasefire” and “a reliable and lasting peace that prevents another war from breaking out.”
Trump has repeatedly said that Ukraine has lost the war and that he has no leverage to demand Russia a significant deal. And some of the leverage that Ukraine had at one point appears to have been lost. Russia’s top military commander said on Saturday the Russian troops had taken full advantage of the Russian region of Kursk. On Sunday, Ukrainian officials continued to deny that they had been kicked out of everything in Kursk.
After the meeting between Zelensky and Trump, Sen. Lindsey Graham – a solid Ukraine alliance who changed his tone as Trump changed his tone in a push to mediate a quick peace – appeared to feel the opening. He praised the Trump administration’s efforts to mediate a ceasefire and also promoted the recent bipartisan threat of imposing more sanctions on Moscow.
Still, there is no doubt that pressure has been built up in Ukraine, both at home and in the Trump administration, and contracts are being signed. Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko, who has developed a tense relationship with Zelensky, said hours after Thursday’s massive missile attack, there may be a time when it may at least temporarily abandon the land for peace. Zelensky also said Ukraine may have to give up territory for a peace agreement. This is what we hope to regain through diplomatic means as long as we obtain security guarantees like NATO membership.
And despite positive feelings about the two leaders’ meeting on Saturday, questions remained about the relationship between them. After a brief speech, a Ukrainian spokesman said the two men would meet again later on Saturday. However, Trump made a quick departure from the Pope’s funeral, telling his aide that he wanted to return to the United States by the end of the day.
After Trump boarded to leave Air Force 1, a Ukrainian spokesman said a second meeting would not happen due to the “very strict schedule of the president.”
Oleksandra Mykolyshyn contributed to a report from Kyiv, Ukraine.
