Trump, Moving Forward with Ukraine-Russia Discussions
A few hours before President Donald Trump welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to his Mar-a-Lago resort on Sunday for lunch and a detailed discussion of an emerging peace plan to end a nearly 4-year-long war, Russia's foreign minister suggested that the two men might have saved themselves the effort.
Sergey Lavrov, the Kremlin's combative chief diplomat, emphasized that Russia would never accept any agreement permitting European troops to be stationed in Ukraine.
Stationing European forces in Ukraine is a crucial part of the security strategy Zelenskyy has been developing in talks with the Trump administration. Their presence aims to deter future invasions and oversee a suggested "demilitarized zone" in areas Russia has claimed should be fully under its control.
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If the Europeans arrive, Lavrov informed reporters, they would be a "valid target" for Russian troops. He never even reached the point of discussing another remarkable clause in the peace proposal — at least, as Zelenskyy outlined last week — that would seemingly require the United States to defend Ukraine if Russia launched another attack.
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Lavrov's strict remarks highlighted three truths as a peace initiative Trump previously claimed must be finished by Thanksgiving, then Christmas, has evolved into what he now acknowledges as a "complex" strategy. The president stated that "working groups" will start to interact with Russia in the New Year.
So far, the Russians have surrendered nothing and have not been formally asked to do so. The ongoing discussions between Americans and Ukrainians have centered on the compromises Zelenskyy is prepared to accept and what the United States is ready to offer in exchange.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin has solely announced what he will never relinquish, including his demand for additional Ukrainian land.