LOS ANGELES (OC).–Russian President Vladimir Putin invited Ukraine’s 47-year-old President Volodymyr Zelensky to the Kremlin to hash out a Ukraine War peace deal. Zelensky abruptly dismissed the idea, accusing Putin of playing games, knowing that he would never go to Moscow. Zelensky wants Putin to go to any number of neural sites from Istanbul to the Arab Gulf States that remain neutral in the conflict. “He can come to Kiev,” Zelensky told ABC News, knowing it was a not starter. Putin wouldn’t go to Kiev any more than Zelensky would go to Moscow. Zelensky simply wouldn’t feel safe in Moscow, know the bad blood between the two of them. Zelenksy accused Putin of “play games” with the United States, hoping he could persuade President Donald to back his continue war with the Kremlin. Zelensky wants more cash-and-arms from the U.S. to keep the war going.
When it comes to face-to-face talks between Putin and Zelensky, the whole thing sounds absurd, considering that peace delegations are the one that work out the details of any settlement before the leaders meet in person. Zelensky and the EU want to put the cart-before-the-horse, pressing for Putin and Zelensky to meet in person. Putin has said any such meeting would be fruitless unless the terms-and-conditions are worked out in advance. Yet Zelensky and the EU persists in saying Putin deliberately avoid peace talks because he refuses to meet with Zelensky directly. But once Putin invited Zelensky to the Kremlin, he says Putin is playing games. EU leaders like French President Emmanuel Macron need to ask themselves why they’ve taken Zelensky’s position on peace talks, rather than working with Trump. Trump was within 90% of a peace deal.
When it comes to peace deal, no one has a better read on the situation than Trump, after his envoy Steve Witkoff meet with Putin five times to get a clear picture what he needed to sign a permanent peace deal. Putin has far more incentive to sign a peace deal than Zelensky who seems perfectly content to continue the war as long as the EU foots the bill. Zelensky has no money to wage war with the Kremlin without the U.S. or EU funding the war and paying for his bankrupt government. Zelensky hasn’t leveled with the Ukrainian people, telling them nightly that he’s winning the war, often citing minor battle that shows Ukraine hold its ground. But if you look at the 1,000 kilometer battle front Putin has made steady progress seizing control of Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Luhansk and Crimea. Zelensky refuses to concede that he lost territory in over three years of war.
When it comes to who’s stonewalling the peace process, Zelensky has little to gain and a lot to lose in any peace negotiation. So far, he refused to discuss what land Putin can demand in any peace agreement. EU officials like Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer agree that Zelensky should not ceded any territory to Putin. Well, if that’s their position, why would they work on post-war security arrangements because there won’t be an end to the war. Trump knows the terms-and-conditions needed to end the war, including what land must be swapped to end the conflict. Putin offered to end the conflict in March 2022 when he only asked Zelensky to recognize the independence of Donetsk and Luhansk and Russian sovereign over Crimea. Zelensky opted for war with the Kremlin and has lost much more territory.
There’s nothing wrong with Putin and Zelensky eventually meeting to sign a peace deal but only after the negotiation teams have a consensus on what must to agreed to for a deal to happen. Putin hinted he was willing to compromise on Kherson and Zaporizhzia and parts of Donetsk and Luhansk. But Zelensky has agreed to nothing, essentially telling Putin he can’t get any land in any peace deal. Putin said this week if Zelensky wants an unending war, the Kremlin is fully prepared to go the distance, even if it involves taking the war to Kiev. EU officials think they’re backing Zelensky but actually harming Ukraine by keeping Russia’s relentless air war going without end. If the EU wanted to be helpful, they’d tell Zelensky to go along with Trump and let him negotiate the best possible deal with Putin, even if it means trading territory. Zelensky only loses more land by the day.
Getting Putin and Zelensky in the same room would only end badly. Russia and Ukraine’s negotiating teams should get to work meeting as often as possible to work out all the details of a mutually acceptable peace. Macron, Merz and Starmer do the peace process no good by telling Zelenksy he doesn’t have to compromise with Putin on trading sovereign land for peace. No one told Zelensky he had to go to war with the Kremlin. Trump told him it was a really bad idea, considering Russia’s military is far more powerful. Former President Joe Biden and Zelensky thought they could vanquish the Russian military when Ukraine’s former military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov said Putin suffered from a terminal illness. Well, gone are the days of Biden and Zelensky’s fantasies replaced by a hard reality that to end the war Zelensky must make some unavoidable compromises.
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.
