LOS ANGELES (OC).–Russian President Vladmir Putin is trying to play the adult in the room, telling reporters in Beijing after Chinese President Xi Jinping hosted a military parade that peace was possible in Ukraine but not unless both sides did their homework, working an acceptable peace deal. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov tried to prepare the Kiev side that working on a deal involves ceding territory taken by Russia during three-and-a-half years of war, including areas of Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Luhansk and Crimea. Zelenky has refused to agree to ceding any land to the Russia Federation, essentially killing any peace deal. President Donald Trump told Zelensky in an Oval Office meetings Feb. 28 that he must cut his losses, end the war and trade land-for-peace. Zelensky threw a fit and was asked to leave the the White House by Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance.
Zelensky has been lying to the Ukrainian people since the Feb. 24, 2022 start of the Ukraine War. He told his people that the Russian military was near collapse and he would vanquish the Russian arm in short order. Former President Joe Biden said after the invasion that the purpose of the U.S. mission in Ukraine was to degrade the Russian military to the point it could no longer wage war. If that’s no a declaration of war on the Kremlin, then what was? Biden’s former Defense Minister Lloyd Austin told a crowd one month later in Ramstein, Germany, that the U.S. would degrade the Russian military. Well, how did all that turn out? Ukraine has lost more sovereign territory in three-and-a-half years of war than they ever imagined, all because Zelensky opted to fight. Putin offered independence for Donetsk and Luhansk and Russian sovereignty over Crimea.
Lavrov tried to let Zelensky and the EU know what they’re up against in crafting a peace deal the works for Moscow. “For peace to be durable, the new territorial realities—must be recognized and formalized in international legal terms,” Lavrov told the Indonesian newspaper Kompas. “A new system of security guarantees for Russia and Ukraine must be formed as an integral element of a pan-continental architecture of equal and indivisible security in Eurasia,” Lavrov said, the forever intellectual diplomat. Ukraine reacted angrily to Lavrov’s pronouncements still pretending they can cut a peace deal where Moscow gets no Ukrainian land. Putin said in Beijing that he was optimistic about a peace deal but only if common sense prevailed in the negotiations. So far, Zelensky and the EU have talked like they plan to continue the war indefinitely.
Zelensky plans to head to Paris to discuss with the “coalition of the willing” the options for a post-war security arrangement. Zelensky has the backing of French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and U.S. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, all of whom have taken a tough position on Putin. EU officials think making concessions on land would invite Putin to take over more EU territory at some future point. Yet the only way out of the conflict is compromising on the last lost during the last three-and-a-half-years of war. Zelensky doesn’t want to admit to the Ukrainian people that he’s lost so much territory to the Kremlin. He fears a coup d’etat if the public figures out how much land he’s lost. Trump told Zelensky the longer he waits to make peace, the more land he’ll lose. Zelensky keeps asking for more long-range weapons to strike Russia.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said Russia has not changed its aggressive goals. “Russia has not changed its aggressive goals and show no sign of readiness for meaningful negotiations,” Sybiga said. “It’s time to hit the Russian war machine with a severe new sanctions and sober Moscow up,” Sybiga said, showing he’s ready to fight to the last drop of blood before he surrenders any land to Russia. Zelensky has been pushing the EU to hit Putin with more economic sanctions, something Trump has been reluctant to do. What’s clear from Sybiga is that Zelensky plans to keep fighting if the EU is willing to foot the bill. Zelensky know that Trump is done supporting Biden’s proxy war with the Kremlin. Responding for call for a meeting with Putin directly, Putin offered to host Zelensky at the Kremlin, something unlikely to happen anytime soon.
Unless the Ukrainian delegation gets real about negotiation-and-compromise, the war will continue indefinitely as explained by Putin today. Putin said he would prefer to settle the conflict politically but if he has no peace partner with Zelensky, Putin said he would finish the job militarily. If the EU listens to Putin, including German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and EU Council President Ursula von der Leyen, they’re in for a long war, funding Ukraine with no end in sight. Zelensky plans to attend the “coalition of the willing” meeting in Paris this week but the consensus so far has been to take a hard line on Putin. Brussels must get real about taking on Ukraine’s war with the Kremlin. Trump has no say when it comes to what the EU plans to do to keep the war going. Trump made it clear the U.S. has spent enough cash on Ukraine and looks to other important foreign policy challenges.
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.
