Trump tells Zelenskyy that Putin wants more territory, urges Kyiv make deal

Nikkei Asia

2 days ago

WASHINGTON/MOSCOW/KYIV (Reuters) -- U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that Ukraine should make a deal to end the war with Russia because "Russia is a very big power, and they're not," after a summit where Vladimir Putin was reported to have demanded more Ukrainian land.
After the two leaders met in Alaska on Friday, Trump told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy that Putin had offered to freeze most front lines if Kyiv ceded all of Donetsk, the industrial region that is one of Moscow's main targets, a source familiar with the matter said.
Zelenskyy rejected the demand, the source said. Russia already controls a fifth of Ukraine, including about three-quarters of Donetsk province, which it first entered in 2014.
Trump also said he agreed with Putin that a peace deal should be sought without the prior ceasefire that Ukraine and its European allies had demanded. That was a change from his position before the summit, when he said would not be happy unless a ceasefire was agreed on.
"It was determined by all that the best way to end the horrific war between Russia and Ukraine is to go directly to a Peace Agreement, which would end the war, and not a mere Ceasefire Agreement, which often times do not hold up," Trump posted on Truth Social.
Zelenskyy said Russia's unwillingness to pause the fighting would complicate efforts to forge a lasting peace. "Stopping the killing is a key element of stopping the war," he said on X.
Nevertheless, Zelenskyy said he would meet Trump in Washington on Monday.
That will evoke memories of a meeting in the White House Oval Office in February, where Trump and Vice President JD Vance gave Zelenskyy a brutal public dressing-down. Trump said a three-way meeting with Putin and Zelenskyy could follow.
Kyiv's European allies welcomed Trump's efforts but vowed to back Ukraine and tighten sanctions on Russia.
Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and has been gradually advancing for months. The war -- the deadliest in Europe for 80 years -- has killed or wounded well over a million people from both sides, including thousands of mostly Ukrainian civilians, according to analysts.
Trump's various comments on the three-hour meeting with Putin mostly aligned with the public positions of Moscow, which says a full settlement will be complex because positions are "diametrically opposed."
Putin signaled no movement in Russia's long-held demands, which also include a veto on Kyiv's desired membership in the NATO alliance. He made no mention in public of meeting Zelenskyy. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said a three-way summit had not been discussed.
In an interview with Fox News' Sean Hannity, Trump signaled that he and Putin had discussed land transfers and security guarantees for Ukraine, and had "largely agreed."
"I think we're pretty close to a deal," he said, adding: "Ukraine has to agree to it. Maybe they'll say 'no.'"
Asked what he would advise Zelenskyy to do, Trump said: "Gotta make a deal."
"Look, Russia is a very big power, and they're not," he added.
Zelenskyy has consistently said he cannot concede territory without changes to Ukraine's constitution, and Kyiv sees Donetsk's "fortress cities" such as Sloviansk and Kramatorsk as a bulwark against further Russian advances.
Zelenskyy has also insisted on security guarantees, to deter Russia from invading again. He said he and Trump had discussed "positive signals" on the U.S. taking part, and that Ukraine needed a lasting peace, not "just another pause" between Russian invasions.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney welcomed what he described as Trump's openness to providing security guarantees to Ukraine under a peace deal. He said security guarantees were "essential to any just and lasting peace."
Putin, who has opposed involving foreign ground forces, said he agreed with Trump that Ukraine's security must be "ensured."
For Putin, just sitting down with Trump represented a victory. He had been ostracized by Western leaders since the start of the war, and just a week earlier had faced a threat of new sanctions from Trump.
Trump spoke to European leaders after returning to Washington. Several stressed the need to keep pressure on Russia.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said an end to the war was closer than ever, thanks to Trump, but said he would impose more sanctions on Russia if the war continues.
European leaders said in a statement that Ukraine must have "ironclad" security guarantees and no limits should be placed on its armed forces or right to seek NATO membership, as Russia has sought.
Some European politicians and commentators were scathing about the summit.
"Putin got his red carpet treatment with Trump, while Trump got nothing," Wolfgang Ischinger, former German ambassador to Washington, posted on X.
Both Russia and Ukraine carried out overnight air attacks, a daily occurrence, while fighting raged on the front.
Trump told Fox he would postpone imposing tariffs on China for buying Russian oil, but he might have to "think about it" in two or three weeks.
He ended his remarks after the summit by telling Putin: "We'll speak to you very soon and probably see you again very soon."
"Next time in Moscow," a smiling Putin responded in English.