LOS ANGELES.–Meeting in Kiev today with 47-year-old Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Eupopean partners led by 47-year-old French President Emmanuel Macron, 63-year-old U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer and 69-year-old President Friedrich Merz essentially sabotaged a ceasefire and peace deal. Zelensky’s European partners undermined 78-year-old President Donald Trump peace negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, threatening Russia with more sanctions if he doesn’t accept a 30-day ceasefire plan, demanding that he refuses accept a deal in 36 hours the EU would slap more sanctions on the Kremlin. “Europe is actually confronting us very openly,” said Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov. Peskov acknowledges that Putin doesn’t oppose a 30-day ceasefire deal just wants certain conditions clarified, including whether Kiev gets more U.S. and EU arms.
Zelensky endorses the European ceasefire plan, largely threatening more sanctions on the Kremlin if it doesn’t accept the deal. “We have agreed that from Monday 12th of May, a full and unconditional ceasefire must start for at least 30 days,” Zelensky said. “We demand it together from Russia and we know that United State supports us in this,” Zelensky said, knowing that Trump and his chief Ukraine negotiator special envoy Steve Witkoff thinks there are other ways of handling the conflict. “The unconditional ceasefire means no conditions and an attempt to put conditions on it is to signal an intention to drag out the war and undermine diplomacy,” Zelensky said, perfectly content to demand certain conditions that could kill any peace deal. Threatening Putin with more economic sanctions is not the approach Trump has taken to get Putin to the peace table.
Trump has done everything possible with his envoy Steve Witkoff to understand Putin’s bottom line conditions for peace. Zelensky and his EU backers have done everything possible to sabotage ceasefire and peace efforts. Meeting at Independence Square in Kiev, Zelensky’s Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak led the EU leaders to honor Ukraine war dead at the memorial to the fallen. Zelensky has his EU partners essentially interfere with a peace process that was close to getting a ceasefire deal. Macron, Starmer, Merz and Poland President Donald Tusk all take Ukraine’s side, blaming Putin for the war. Putin said there were “nuances” that had to be addressed before he signed on to any 30-day ceasefire deal. Putin calls U.S. and EU weapons a “nuance” when it comes to any 30-day ceasefire. Only Trump has shown a willingness to stop supplying arms to Ukraine.
Peskov acknowledged that Russia is “very grateful” for U.S. mediation efforts, something that the EU intended to undermine. Macron in particular felt disrespected by Trump because he wasn’t included in ceasefire talks with Steve Witkoff and Putin. Macron wants to grandstand but shows a lot of contempt for the Kremlin, trying to find a legitimate basis for striking a ceasefire deal. Peskov let Zelensky and the EU contingent know Putin would not be railroaded into any EU-brokered ceasefire or peace deal. Zelensky chose to bypass Trump thinking he would get a better deal from Putin in any brokered settlement. Instead, Zelensky has made peace next to impossible because of threats against the Russian Federation. EU leader are perturbed by Trump’s reversal of the Biden proxy war strategy, especially seeking normal U.S.-Russian relations to resume cooperative diplomatic ties.
Trump was only world leader who pushed for a ceasefire and peace in Ukraine. EU leaders felt they needed to throw in their own two cents, essentially rubbers stamping Zelensky’s position that is unacceptable to Putin. So, if the EU really wanted peace on the European Continent, they would have let Trump handle the peace process. Coming up with a harebrained scheme to threaten Putin with more sanctions unless he capitulates is exactly the wrong approach. Putin told Witkoff he needs assurance that the U.S. and EU will stop arming Ukraine, including a commitment that it cannot join NATO. Putin says NATO has been encroaching in his territory for years, now having Finland and Sweden join the Western Alliance. Trump took the right approach with Putin telling him he wants to restore normal U.S.-Russian relations after four years of Biden.
Whatever happens in Ukraine, Trump has certainly done his part to move along the peace process, trying to understand the Russian position. Threatening Putin with more economic sanctions is exactly the wrong approach that will only delay eventual ceasefire and peace talks. Trump was the only world leader to see that Zelensky was destroying Ukraine, not defending its territory. Every move he made in over three years of war has backfired, decimating Ukraine’s infrastructure, killing thousands, exiling millions and losing 25% of Ukraine best sovereign territory on the Black Sea coast. Trump was the only world leader to push for peace to help save Ukraine, yet has been accused by Zelensky of selling Ukraine short. When peace eventually comes to Ukraine, Trump will be the one that gets the credit, certainly not Zelensky for making peace more difficult.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
