Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appears to have already rejected President Donald Trump‘s terms for a peace plan with Russia as the two leaders prepare for an Oval Office showdown.
Trump laid out his demands on Sunday night by telling Zelensky to sacrifice Crimea and give up his desire to join NATO in advance of Monday’s blockbuster meeting in the White House. Zelensky returns to Washington DC for the first time since their famous bust-up in February.
Trump posted a dramatic statement that claimed Zelensky could ‘end the war with Russia almost immediately’ – which the Ukrainian leader rebuked within 90 minutes.
‘President Zelensky of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to, or he can continue to fight,’ Trump wrote on Truth Social about 9.20pm.
‘Remember how it started. No getting back Obama given Crimea (12 years ago, without a shot being fired!), and NO GOING INTO NATO BY UKRAINE. Some things never change!!!’
At 10.40pm, Zelensky took to X to instead insist ‘Russia must end this war, which it itself started,’ railing against Trump’s suggestion that he was solely responsible for ending the conflict.
‘Ukrainians are fighting for their land, for their independence. Now, our soldiers have successes in Donetsk and Sumy regions,’ he wrote.
Zelensky also indicated he would not acquiesce with Trump on Crimea, territory which Russia annexed in 2014 and has been furiously defending during the three-year war.
President Donald Trump has issued an extraordinary rebuke of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, telling him he can ‘end the war with Russia’
It is feared Zelensky could be strong-armed by the President on Monday into accepting these terms or risk losing American support. Pictured: Zelensky and President Trump meet at the Oval Office in February
‘We all share a strong desire to end this war quickly and reliably. And peace must be lasting,’ Zelensky wrote.
‘Not like it was years ago, when Ukraine was forced to give up Crimea and part of our East – part of Donbas – and Putin simply used it as a springboard for a new attack.
‘Of course, Crimea should not have been given up then, just as Ukrainians did not give up Kyiv, Odesa, or Kharkiv after 2022.’
Zelensky took a lighter note while addressing Trump, taking pains to not criticize the president directly.
‘I am confident that we will defend Ukraine, effectively guarantee security, and that our people will always be grateful to President Trump, everyone in America, and every partner and ally for their support and invaluable assistance,’ he added.
While Zelensky expressed gratitude for both Trump and America in his statement, there were concerns across Europe that his meeting with Trump on Monday could end poorly.
Leaders from Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Finland are rallying around the Ukrainian president and will join him in Washington for the highly anticipated meeting amid fears he is walking into a trap.
In a sign of EU leaders’ bullishness, French president Emmanuel Macron said afterwards: ‘If we’re not strong today, we’ll pay dearly tomorrow.’
The meeting comes days after Trump met with Putin for a two-and-a-half hour discussion in Alaska about the ongoing conflict
Their pledge to be at Zelensky’s side is an apparent effort to ensure the meeting goes better than the last one in February, when Trump berated Zelensky in a heated Oval Office encounter.
At the time, the Ukrainian leader was asked to leave the White House by top Trump advisors following the heated confrontation.
‘You’re gambling with World War III, and what you’re doing is very disrespectful to the country, this country that’s backed you far more than a lot of people say they should have,’ Trump told Zelensky.
Vice President JD Vance chimed in, demanding that Zelensky show gratitude – asking, ‘Have you said ”thank you” once?’
‘The Europeans are very afraid of the Oval Office scene being repeated and so they want to support Mr. Zelensky to the hilt,’ said retired French General Dominique Trinquand.
‘It’s a power struggle and a position of strength that might work with Trump.’
Trump appeared unfazed by the EU leaders’ decision to join Zelensky to send him a message, writing on Truth Social on Sunday night: ‘Big day at the White House tomorrow.
‘Never had so many European Leaders at one time. My great honor to host them!!!’
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meets European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen
He added: ‘The Fake News will say that it is a big loss for President Trump to host so many great European Leaders at our beautiful White House. Actually, it is a great honor for America!!!’
Trump and Zelensky are due to meet at 1pm ET, with a bilateral discussion to take place at 1.15pm.
By 3.15pm, Trump is due to host multilateral meetings with leaders from the EU.
Neil Melvin, director of international security at the London-based Royal United Services Institute, said European leaders are trying to ‘shape this fast-evolving agenda.’
The meeting comes days after Trump met with Putin for a two-and-a-half hour discussion in Alaska about the ongoing conflict.
Afterwards, Trump admitted he and Putin could not strike a deal on the crisis, but insisted: ‘We had an extremely productive meeting, and many points were agreed to.
‘We didn’t get there, but we have a very good chance of getting there.’
After the Alaska summit, the idea of a ceasefire appears all-but-abandoned, with the narrative shifting toward Putin’s agenda of ensuring Ukraine does not join NATO or even the EU.
Diplomatic sources said that Friday’s summit paved the way for a deal in which Ukraine would be expected to surrender large swathes of the Donbas region in the east of the country, including areas currently controlled by Kyiv.
While Russia has taken most of Luhansk, it only holds about 75 per cent of Donetsk, which is both vital for the nation’s defence and also home to many of the rare-earth minerals Putin craves.
He has also taken about 74 per cent of the neighbouring Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions.
Zelensky earlier pushed back against Trump’s assertion — which aligned with Putin’s preference — that the two sides should negotiate a complete end to the war, rather than first securing a ceasefire.
This would allow Putin to continue his deadly strikes until a full peace deal was achieved.
Zelensky said a ceasefire would provide breathing room to review Putin’s demands.
‘It’s impossible to do this under the pressure of weapons,’ he said. ‘Putin does not want to stop the killing, but he must do it.’
On Sunday, Trump’s former vice-president Mike Pence insisted Putin was ‘the bad guy’ and should be treated as such during negotiations.
He said he knew Trump liked to use a ‘velvet glove’ style in dealing with dictators, but added: ‘The hammer needs to come and it needs to come immediately.’
Pence told CNN that as well as meeting Zelensky, Trump should call for another sanctions bill against Russia to be passed ‘immediately’ in the Senate.
He also gave Trump credit for pursuing his earlier ceasefire deal despite ‘many voices in and around the administration that would have cut Ukraine loose months ago.’
This article was originally published by a www.dailymail.co.uk . Read the Original article here. .