Zelenskyy says ending Russia – Ukrainian war is “very very far away” – country
President Donald Trump slammed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday, suggesting that Russia's war against Ukraine is over, which could be “very, very far away.”
“This is the worst statement Zelenskyy can make, and the United States won't stand it for longer!” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social Platform.
Zelenskyy said late Sunday that he believes the war will last for some time while trying to provide a positive view on U.S.-Ukrainian relations after meeting with Republican president and vice president JD Vance.
“I think our relationship (with the United States) will continue because it's not just an occasional relationship,” Zelenskyy said, referring to Washington's support for the last three years of war.
But Trump seems even more annoyed by Zelenskyy's latest comments, suggesting that it will take some time to end the three-year conflict.
“That's what I said, as long as he gets the support of the United States, this guy doesn't want peace, Europe, in their meeting with Zelenskyy, they say flatly that they can't do the job without the United States – probably not a good statement on the performance of Russia's strength,” Trump added in his post. ” “What are they thinking?” ”
France Floating Ukraine Ceasefire Proposal
Britain said on Monday that there were several possible Ukrainian ceasefire proposals on the table after France proposed an initial one-month truce proposal that could pave the way for peace talks.
European countries led by Britain and France are looking for options for peace proposals, including Ukraine, after the Oval Office between Trump and Zelenskyy broke down last week.
“There are obviously a lot of options on the table,” said a spokesman for Prime Minister Keir Starmer. “I just don't have a comment on the options to run.”
“So we welcome Europe to step up to speed up its trip to Europe, but they must also invest in the ability to do so,” White House national security adviser Mike Waltz told reporters when asked about the European weekend event rally around Zelenskyy.
France, Britain and potential other European countries have proposed sending troops to Ukraine during a ceasefire, but said they want U.S. support, a proposal called “backstage.”
Zelenskyy said the ceasefire must obtain clear security assurances from the West to ensure that Russia, which invaded Ukraine three years ago and occupied about 20% of its territory, would not attack again. Trump refuses to provide any such warranty.
Get the daily national news
Get news, politics, economics and current events titles delivered to your inbox every day.
Starmer held a summit of European leaders in London on Sunday and said European leaders had agreed to develop a Ukrainian peace plan, proposing it to the United States.
French President Emmanuel Macron raised the possibility of a month's ceasefire in an interview at the summit, although so far, other allies have not publicly recognized it.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said of Macron's proposal: “A truce like this in the air, the ocean and energy infrastructure will allow us to determine whether Russian President Vladimir Putin acts sincerely during the truce.”
“That was when the real peace talks began.”
Macron said in an interview published by Le Figaro that European ground forces can only be deployed to Ukraine in the second phase.
When Zelenskyy asked him if he knew the plans mentioned by Macron, he told reporters in London: “I know everything.”
European countries are adapting what some leaders are talking about is the biggest policy reversal since Washington's World War II, especially after Friday's bankruptcy, when Zelenskiy suddenly left the White House after Trump and Vice President JD Vance were wearing cameras in front of cameras.
Ukrainian leaders have been signing a deal in Washington to bring the United States into Ukrainian minerals, but have not signed it.
Waltz said in his speech at Fox News that Zelenskyy should apologize.
“We need to hear from President Zelenskyy that he regrets what happened, he is ready to sign a mineral deal and be ready to participate in peace negotiations,” he said.
“I don't think it's too much to ask. We're going to see what happens in the next 48 hours, but we certainly want to move forward in a positive way.”
Mels said the Oval Office conflict was “not spontaneous”
Friedrich Merz, the Conservative Party who became German Chancellor after winning the biggest vote in the election a week ago, suggested Friday’s Oval Office debate was a trap set in advance for Ukrainian leaders.
“This is not a spontaneous response to Zelenskyy's intervention, but it is obviously a manufacturing upgrade,” he said.
“We must now show that we have the ability to act independently in Europe,” he said.
Privately, European officials have been furious about Ukraine’s betrayal, which has previously enjoyed the firm support of the United States since its Russian invasion.
“Donald Trump must choose whether he wants to call himself the leader of the free world or the leader of the blackmail gang. The latter is not interesting for Europe,” a senior official announced after the explosion.
But Europeans are also working hard to keep the United States on the side. Ukrainian-US relations need to be resettled because Trump's initiative to end the war is “the only performance in town,” said Peter Mandelson, British ambassador to the United States.
Trump spoke with Putin by phone last month and then announced that negotiations to end the war would quickly blind the EU and Zelenskyy.
European leaders agree that they must spend more money on defense to show Trump that the mainland can protect themselves. The EU will hold an emergency summit on Thursday.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she will inform member states on Tuesday to strengthen European defense industry and the EU's military capabilities.
“We need a massive surge in defense, no doubt. We want lasting peace, but lasting peace can only be built on strength, and strength begins with strengthening ourselves.”
Russia made a public appearance in a conflict between Trump and Zelensky on Friday, praising Trump for changing U.S. policy and condemning Zelenskyy's proposal to challenge Trump.
“We see the collective western part begin to lose its collective nature, and the division of the collective western part begins,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
“There is still a group of countries that would rather form a war party, and the country announced its preparations to further support Ukraine to support the war and ensure the continued hostilities.”
– Documents by Reuters' Elizabeth Piper and John Irish
(Other reports by Sarah Young, Richard Lough, Makini Brice, Dmitry Antonov, Guy Faulconbridge, Doina Chiacu, Doina Chiacu, Steve Holland and Angelo Amante; Edited by Mark Heinrich and Peter Graff)
