(FeaturedHeadlines.com) Former US President and presumptive 2024 Republican Party presidential candidate Donald Trump would become a “loser” if he pushes Ukraine to accept a peace deal with Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. Trump would risk starting a Third World War if he pursues peace between Russia and Ukraine, according to Zelenskyy.
The United States will lose its position as a world leader if it pressures Ukraine to accept a peace deal with Russia, Zelenskyy said. Such an action would open the door for other countries to model Russian President Vladimir Putin’s approach to geopolitics, Zelenskyy said.
Zelenskyy also rejected the idea of Ukraine ceding Crimea or the Donbass region to Russia, claiming that Ukrainians would “not put up” with such a deal. Ukrainians will not be forced into accepting an “ultimatum” from Putin, Zelenskyy said.
Nevertheless, more than 100 countries are set to join Ukraine at a two-day peace summit in Switzerland beginning on June 15. US Vice President Kamala Harris and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan will represent the Biden administration at the summit.
Russia declined to attend the event, which the Kremlin said is not results-oriented. Consequently, China has also declined to attend, contending that Russia’s presence is required at such a summit.
Although Zelenskyy is presently vocal in his desire not to negotiate a peace deal that could be acceptable to Russia as well, Moscow and Kiev were on the verge of a peace deal in spring 2022. However, the potential deal was derailed by former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
The leader of Zelenskyy’s political party, David Arakhamia, helped lead the early peace negotiations. Arakhamia said that Ukraine and Russia drafted an agreement to end fighting if Kiev abandoned its aspiration to join NATO, but noted that Ukraine did not necessarily trust Russia to uphold its end of the deal.
Whether Trump could bridge the divide between Ukraine and Russia and foster a peace agreement remains an open question, but it appears as though Zelenskyy is unwilling at this time to accept anything less than full capitulation from the Kremlin.
Copyright 2024, FeaturedHeadlines.com
