Donald Trump (AP)
US president Donald Trump on Monday said a peace deal to end the four-year-long war between Ukraine and Russia is “closer than ever,” citing ongoing talks between European leaders and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Berlin.Trump said the United States is receiving “tremendous support” from European countries, including Germany, Italy, France, the UK, Poland, Norway, Denmark, Finland, and the Netherlands, all of which he said are keen to see an end to the conflict.
“We are going to get it done. I think we are closer now, and they will tell you that they are closer now with numerous conversations with President Putin of Russia. And I think we are closer now than we have ever been… We want to save a lot of lives,” Trump said, speaking at the White House. “We are getting closer. We are having tremendous support from European leaders that want to get it ended also,” he added. The US President also acknowledged the difficulty of bringing Russia and Ukraine into agreement on both the timing and the terms of a potential settlement. Trump added that while he has expressed optimism in the past, his expectations have previously been undermined by setbacks from one side or the other. “At this moment, Russia wants to get it, but the problem is they will want to end it, and all of a sudden they want it, and Ukraine will want to get it ended and all of a sudden they won’t. We have to get them on the same page,” Trump said. The assessment followed two days of talks in Berlin involving officials from Europe, Ukraine and the United States. Trump was represented at the discussions by his foreign envoy, Steve Witkoff, and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner.Trump also joined a dinner of European leaders by phone on Monday to discuss the emerging framework of an agreement, and held two separate calls with Witkoff and Kushner as the talks progressed.“Things are seemingly going well, but we’ve been saying that for a long time, and it’s a difficult one,” Trump had said after the call. A US official said earlier on Monday that around 90 per cent of the issues between Russia and Ukraine have been resolved, with territorial concessions remaining a key point of contention. The official added that the US had put forward “thought-provoking” proposals to break the deadlock, including the creation of an “economic free zone,” as cited by CNN.European leaders, meanwhile, have agreed to participate in any Western security guarantees for Ukraine, though control over territory continues to be one of the main obstacles, according to Al Jazeera. Separately, Ukrainian Zelenskyy has previously indicated that Kyiv is prepared to relinquish its bid for Nato membership in exchange for firm security assurances from Western partners.Discussions this week also covered plans for Ukraine’s reconstruction, with representatives from investment firm BlackRock holding talks with Ukrainian officials on potential financial support. The future of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant was also raised, though the issue remains unresolved.Meanwhile, overnight Russian forces launched 153 drones at Ukraine, according to Ukrainian officials, who said 17 of them reached their targets. Russia’s defence ministry, in a separate claim, said its air defences shot down 130 Ukrainian drones. Go to Source
