 "Trump ramps up pressure on Ukraine, wants response to ceasefire plans this week: Report")
President Donald Trump wants Ukraine’s response to multiple US proposals to end the ongoing war with Russia this week, according to a report.
Trump’s ultimatum is the latest instance of increasing US pressure on Ukraine. Even though Russia has rejected all three US-endorsed ceasefire proposals so far and violated the ceasefire it declared unilaterally, the Trump administration has not put any pressure on Russia so far. Instead, Trump has continued to put pressure on Ukraine that has ranged from personal attacks on the nation’s leader, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, to backing proposals that essentially fulfil Russia’s wish list.
The Wall Street Journal has reported that Trump wants Ukraine’s response to proposals in a meeting of US, European, and Ukrainian officials in London later this week.
The US proposals, if they are implemented, would serve Russia a victory on a platter and would fulfil many of Russia’s maximalist objectives, according to the report.
Trump considering recognising Russian’s occupation of Ukraine’s land: Report
Among the proposals that Trump wants Ukraine to respond to is the US recognition of Crimea and other Ukrainian territories captured and annexed by Russia, according to The Journal.
So far, Ukraine has said that the recognition and formal surrender of Crimea and other territories captured by Russia is a red line that it would not cross.
Russia invaded Ukraine in 2014 and captured and then annexed the region of Crimea. Then, following the second invasion in 2014, Russia annexed four regions of Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Luhansk, and Donetsk. Even though Russia controls a substantial chunk of these four regions, war is raging in these regions and Russia does not control these four regions in entirety.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsSo far, under the terms of Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and even the first term of Trump, the United States has had a clear stand that Crimea’s occupation and annexation by Russia is illegal. However, it appears that Trump is about to change the stand now.
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Other components of Trump’s proposals include formally banning Ukraine’s entry into Nato and the United States controlling critical infrastructure inside Ukraine, according to The Journal.
Among the critical infrastructure of Ukraine, Trump wants the United States to take over the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, which is the largest in Europe.
Once under US control, the plant would supply electricity to both Ukrainian- and Russian-controlled Ukrainian territories, as per the newspaper.
Even though Trump is open to recognising Russia’s occupation of Crimea, the newspaper reported that the US proposal falls short of recognising the four Ukrainian regions annexed by Russia in 2022, but the proposal also does not call for Russia to vacate those regions.
This means that Trump has de facto blessed the Russian occupation and annexation of Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Luhansk, and Donetsk in the proposal on the table.
In a minor concession that essentially means nothing, Trump has agreed to not put any cap on the size of post-war military of Ukraine or the deployment of European soldiers on Ukrainian soil, as per the newspaper.
Victory for Russia, no security guarantee for Ukraine
If Trump manages to force Ukraine to accept his proposals, it would essentially mean victory for Russia as it would accomplish most of Russia’s goals.
If Trump’s proposals are accepted, Russia would get Crimea’s annexation recognised; de facto recognition of the annexation of Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Luhansk, and Donetsk; weakening of Ukraine as it would lose control of the Zaporizhzhia power plant; and a freeze of war along the frontlines as they exist today.
To be sure, Russia’s objective to replace Zelenskyy with a puppet regime and erode Ukraine’s national identity would not succeed. But then analysts have long maintained that any ceasefire reached in this war would be used by Russian leader Vladimir Putin to rearm for another invasion a few years down the line — just like the invasion in 2022 came after the first invasion in 2014 and the yearslong Russia-backed insurgency in eastern Ukraine.
For Ukraine, there is little to nothing in the deal. There are no security guarantees.
The closest positive in the deal for Ukraine is Trump’s approval for any European military presence inside Ukraine to enforce any ceasefire reached between Ukraine and Russia.
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