Abdul Rahman
US President Donald Trump’s White House meeting with European leaders on Monday, August 18, ended with the promise of security guarantees for Ukraine. The guarantees are part of a series of incentives being offered to the Eastern European country in exchange for signing a potential peace deal with the Russians that would end more than three years of war in Ukraine.
After the meeting, Trump claimed he had secured a summit meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, adding that the location was the only remaining detail.
Trump also claimed that the Russia-Ukraine bilateral summit would be followed by a trilateral summit because “both Zelenskyy and Putin” want him to be involved.
However, Trump used the occasion to push Ukraine to buy billions of dollars worth of US weapons.
After the meeting, Zelenskyy confirmed that Ukraine will buy USD 90 billion worth of weapons from the US as part of the security guarantees offered by its Western allies.
Zelenskyy also claimed that this so-called security guarantee deal is the “starting point towards ending the war” and expressed his willingness to meet Putin for the summit as “necessary to resolve sensitive issues,” CNBC reported.
Zelenskyy had long-opposed any direct meeting with Putin until Russia ended the war, withdrew its troops from all its territories, and agreed to pay reparations for the war which began in February 2022.
According to reports, the details of both weapons deals with the US and the so-called security guarantees provided by the Europeans under US coordination would be finalized in the next 10 days.
Trump has claimed that European countries would be playing the central role in the security guarantees to Ukraine along with his country’s participation as a coordinator.
The guarantees are being used as an incentive for Ukraine to reach a peace deal with Russia. Trump has also claimed that Russia has no objections to such security guarantees to Ukraine despite a possible involvement of NATO in the arrangement along with the deployment of foreign troops in the country.
Russian news agency TASS reported that during the meeting, Trump proposed that Russia and Ukraine can resolve the conflict through a potential exchange of territories.
Russia has controlled most parts of Ukraine’s four South-Eastern provinces, Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaprizhzhia and Kherson since the beginning of the war. However, Zelenskyy has so far been opposed to the idea of Ukraine ceding any part of its territory to Russia in exchange for peace.
No Temporary Ceasefire
The meeting was attended by President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, Secretary General of NATO Mark Rutte, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and President of Finland Alexander Stubb, along with Trump and Zelenskyy.
It was reported that during the meeting, several European leaders, such as German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, demanded a ceasefire before the next round of meetings or the proposed Zelenskyy-Putin summit.
However, the proposal for a temporary ceasefire was opposed by the Russians during the Putin-Trump meeting in Alaska on August 15. Despite previously demanding the same, Trump has reportedly agreed with Putin’s objections on a temporary ceasefire since the Alaska summit.
In Alaska, Putin, while acknowledging Trump’s efforts, had warned against attempts to disrupt the ongoing peace process “through provocations and behind the scene intrigues”.
A similar peace process between Ukraine and Russia was held during the initial days of the war in Istanbul, Turkey. However, Russia claims the process was disrupted after the Europeans applied pressure on Zelenskyy to withdraw from an almost finalized deal in April 2022.
Replying to a question on the need for a ceasefire before the next round of the peace process, Trump told media persons on Monday that a peace deal can be worked out while the fighting is going on as neither of the parties is ready for a ceasefire, citing possible strategic disadvantages.
“They have to fight, I wish they could stop, I would like them to stop, but strategically that would be a disadvantage for one side or the other” Trump was quoted saying by CNBC.
Putin and Trump had a phone conversation after the White House meeting in which Trump briefed Putin about the outcomes. The possibility of increasing the size of the delegations for direct talks between Ukraine and Russia was discussed during the phone conversation, apart from the need for a summit with Zelenskyy, TASS reported.
Courtesy: Peoples Dispatch
After the meeting, Trump claimed he had secured a summit meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, adding that the location was the only remaining detail.
Trump also claimed that the Russia-Ukraine bilateral summit would be followed by a trilateral summit because “both Zelenskyy and Putin” want him to be involved.
However, Trump used the occasion to push Ukraine to buy billions of dollars worth of US weapons.
After the meeting, Zelenskyy confirmed that Ukraine will buy USD 90 billion worth of weapons from the US as part of the security guarantees offered by its Western allies.
Zelenskyy also claimed that this so-called security guarantee deal is the “starting point towards ending the war” and expressed his willingness to meet Putin for the summit as “necessary to resolve sensitive issues,” CNBC reported.
Zelenskyy had long-opposed any direct meeting with Putin until Russia ended the war, withdrew its troops from all its territories, and agreed to pay reparations for the war which began in February 2022.
According to reports, the details of both weapons deals with the US and the so-called security guarantees provided by the Europeans under US coordination would be finalized in the next 10 days.
Trump has claimed that European countries would be playing the central role in the security guarantees to Ukraine along with his country’s participation as a coordinator.
The guarantees are being used as an incentive for Ukraine to reach a peace deal with Russia. Trump has also claimed that Russia has no objections to such security guarantees to Ukraine despite a possible involvement of NATO in the arrangement along with the deployment of foreign troops in the country.
Russian news agency TASS reported that during the meeting, Trump proposed that Russia and Ukraine can resolve the conflict through a potential exchange of territories.
Russia has controlled most parts of Ukraine’s four South-Eastern provinces, Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaprizhzhia and Kherson since the beginning of the war. However, Zelenskyy has so far been opposed to the idea of Ukraine ceding any part of its territory to Russia in exchange for peace.
No Temporary Ceasefire
The meeting was attended by President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, Secretary General of NATO Mark Rutte, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and President of Finland Alexander Stubb, along with Trump and Zelenskyy.
It was reported that during the meeting, several European leaders, such as German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, demanded a ceasefire before the next round of meetings or the proposed Zelenskyy-Putin summit.
However, the proposal for a temporary ceasefire was opposed by the Russians during the Putin-Trump meeting in Alaska on August 15. Despite previously demanding the same, Trump has reportedly agreed with Putin’s objections on a temporary ceasefire since the Alaska summit.
In Alaska, Putin, while acknowledging Trump’s efforts, had warned against attempts to disrupt the ongoing peace process “through provocations and behind the scene intrigues”.
A similar peace process between Ukraine and Russia was held during the initial days of the war in Istanbul, Turkey. However, Russia claims the process was disrupted after the Europeans applied pressure on Zelenskyy to withdraw from an almost finalized deal in April 2022.
Replying to a question on the need for a ceasefire before the next round of the peace process, Trump told media persons on Monday that a peace deal can be worked out while the fighting is going on as neither of the parties is ready for a ceasefire, citing possible strategic disadvantages.
“They have to fight, I wish they could stop, I would like them to stop, but strategically that would be a disadvantage for one side or the other” Trump was quoted saying by CNBC.
Putin and Trump had a phone conversation after the White House meeting in which Trump briefed Putin about the outcomes. The possibility of increasing the size of the delegations for direct talks between Ukraine and Russia was discussed during the phone conversation, apart from the need for a summit with Zelenskyy, TASS reported.
Courtesy: Peoples Dispatch
Comments (0)
Leave a Comment