Zelensky says Trump plan forces Ukraine to choose between ‘dignity’ and a key partner
President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed the Ukrainian people on Friday and said President Trump’s 28-point peace plan will force Ukraine to choose between “losing our dignity” or risking the loss of U.S. support.
Why it matters: The plan would force Ukraine to accept harsh concessions, including the loss of even more territory than Russia currently controls. Zelensky has told the Trump administration he’s prepared to negotiate, but the White House is pushing him to sign within one week.
What he’s saying: “This is one of the most difficult moments in our history,” Zelensky said in his video address, according to translations published by multiple media outlets.
- “The pressure on Ukraine is now among the heaviest. Ukraine may now face a very difficult choice: the loss of dignity, or the risk of losing a key partner.”
- Zelensky warned that Ukraine faces an “extremely harsh winter” if he spurns Trump’s offer.
- He said U.S. officials “expect an answer from us.”
Between the lines: Given his claim that accepting the current deal would force Ukraine to accept “life without freedom, without dignity, without justice,” it doesn’t sound as though his answer can possibly be yes.
- However, he said he would work with the U.S. to find solutions: “I will provide arguments, I will persuade, propose alternatives.”
- Zelensky made clear he will be leaning heavily on European support as he comes under intense pressure from the US.
Driving the news: Zelensky spoke by phone on Friday with the leaders of France, Germany and the U.K., all of whom are helping Ukraine shape its response to the U.S. plan and come up with alternative proposals. [Continue reading…]
The United States has threatened to cut intelligence sharing and weapons supplies for Ukraine to press it into agreeing to the framework of a U.S.-brokered peace deal, two people familiar with the matter said.
The sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that Kyiv was under greater pressure from Washington than during any previous peace discussions, and that the U.S. wanted Ukraine to sign a framework of the deal by next Thursday.
“They want to stop the war and want Ukraine to pay the price,” one of the sources said. [Continue reading…]