{"id":44598,"date":"2025-04-23T19:12:15","date_gmt":"2025-04-23T19:12:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/44598\/"},"modified":"2025-04-23T19:12:15","modified_gmt":"2025-04-23T19:12:15","slug":"peace-deal-very-close-trump-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/44598\/","title":{"rendered":"peace deal \u2018very close\u2019, Trump says"},"content":{"rendered":"

Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, has accused President Zelensky of \u201ctrying to litigate this peace negotiation in the press\u201d following President Trump\u2019s earlier attack on his Ukrainian counterpart.<\/p>\n

Leavitt told reporters that the president\u2019s \u201cpatience is running very thin\u201d as he seeks to force through a peace accord, warning that Zelensky \u201cseems to be moving in the wrong direction\u201d.<\/p>\n

She insisted that the Trump administration has not demanded that Ukraine formally abandon Crimea.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe president is not asking Ukraine to recognise Crimea. Nobody has asked them to do that. What he is asking is for people to come to the negotiating table, recognising that this has been a brutal war for far too long,\u201d Leavitt said.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnfortunately, President Zelensky has been trying to litigate this peace negotiation in the press, and that\u2019s unacceptable to the president. These should be closed-door negotiations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Asked if Trump would walk away from negotiations if Zelensky did not bow to Washington\u2019s demands by the end of the day, Leavitt said: \u201cNot by the end of the day today, but the president has maintained that his frustration is growing and he needs to see this thing come to an end.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ukraine will \u2018stand firm\u2019 in peace talks<\/p>\n

Ukraine will \u201cstand firm on its core principles\u201d in negotiations to reach a peace deal with Russia, Andriy Yermak, President Zelensky\u2019s chief of staff, has said.<\/p>\n

Yermak said he had conveyed to Keith Kellogg, the US special envoy, Ukraine\u2019s position that an \u201cimmediate, full, and unconditional ceasefire\u201d was the first step towards a \u201clasting peace\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe expressed hope that this aligns with President Trump\u2019s vision,\u201d Yermak said on X after their meeting in London on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cI stressed that under any circumstances, Ukraine will stand firm on its core principles during negotiations, as they are the foundation of our sovereignty and territorial integrity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, pulled out of the talks after Ukraine reportedly insisted that they should focus on an initial 30-day ceasefire rather than Trump\u2019s ultimatum.<\/p>\n

Please enable cookies and other technologies to view this content. You can update your cookies preferences any time using privacy manager.<\/a><\/p>\n

Enable cookiesAllow cookies onceWitkoff off to Moscow again\"Steve<\/p>\n

Steve Witkoff met President Putin earlier this month<\/p>\n

SPUTNIK\/GAVRIIL GRIGOROV\/REUTERS<\/p>\n

Steve Witkoff, President Trump\u2019s special envoy, will travel to Moscow for a fresh round of peace talks with President Putin, according to the White House.<\/p>\n

Witkoff, who has met Putin on three occasions in the Russian capital, has been accused by President Zelensky of \u201cdisseminating Russian narratives\u201d about the three-year conflict.<\/p>\n

After their previous meeting earlier this month, Witkoff said the US had \u201cfinally\u201d received an answer from Putin about his demands for a permanent truce. These included Russia\u2019s claims to occupied Ukrainian territories and not allowing Ukraine to join Nato.<\/p>\n

The meeting is expected to take place on Friday, US officials told Axios.<\/p>\n

Ukraine \u2018wants war to end more than anyone\u2019<\/p>\n

Ukraine remains committed to working with the United States to end Russia\u2019s three-year war, Andrii Sybiha, the foreign minister, said after talks with European and US representatives in London.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring our meeting with US special envoy General Keith Kellogg we had a constructive exchange of views on the path to peace,\u201d Sybiha said on X. \u201cUkraine wants the war to end more than anyone else in the world. We are committed to working together to achieve this goal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sybiha did not directly address President Trump\u2019s personal criticism of Ukraine\u2019s President Zelensky earlier on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Referring to an earlier meeting with the UK, France and Germany, he added: \u201cWe reaffirmed Ukraine\u2019s commitment to peace efforts led by US President Donald Trump and our willingness to move forward toward a comprehensive, just and lasting peace. We will continue our regular dialogue.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump and Vance \u2018don\u2019t care about Ukraine\u2019<\/p>\n

The US administration\u2019s stance on Ukraine is the \u201ctip of the isolationist iceberg\u201d, John Bolton, Donald Trump\u2019s former national security adviser, has told Times Radio.<\/p>\n

Speaking to John Pienaar, Bolton said: \u201cI think that this is the mark of several things coming together. On Trump\u2019s side, Vladimir Putin is his friend. He\u2019s never been friends with Zelensky. He wants to continue to have good personal relations with Putin and therefore, in his mind, good relations with Russia.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe thinks this is Biden\u2019s war, and he wants it behind him. It\u2019s all about Trump, pure and simple. He just doesn\u2019t care about Ukraine.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn Vance\u2019s part, this man is an isolationist, and he doesn\u2019t care what happens in Ukraine. He\u2019s said this consistently going back to his 2022 senatorial campaign, even though Ohio, the state he comes from, has a large Ukrainian-American population. His unwillingness to do anything for Ukraine is clear, but it\u2019s only the tip of the isolationist iceberg. That\u2019s what\u2019s at work here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s social media post in fullTrump: Crimea was lost years ago<\/p>\n

President Trump has launched a scathing personal attack on President Zelensky, accusing him of \u201cboasting\u201d and saying Ukraine has \u201cno cards to play\u201d after Kyiv appeared to reject a US peace ultimatum.<\/p>\n

The US president accused Zelensky of making \u201cinflammatory\u201d comments when he insisted Ukraine would never recognise Crimea as legally Russian.<\/p>\n

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said Crimea was \u201clost years ago\u201d and appeared to defend President Putin\u2019s claims to the the Ukrainian peninsula, annexed by Russia in 2014, after the US submitted a peace proposal that would recognise Russia\u2019s sovereignty of the region.<\/p>\n

Trump said: \u201cIt\u2019s inflammatory statements like Zelensky\u2019s that makes it so difficult to settle this war. He has nothing to boast about!<\/p>\n

\u201cThe situation for Ukraine is dire \u2014 he can have peace or he can fight for another three years before losing the whole country.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump says peace deal \u2018very close\u2019 but warns Zelensky<\/p>\n

A peace deal between Russia and Ukraine is \u201cvery close\u201d, President Trump has said.<\/p>\n

Writing on his Truth Social account, the president said: \u201cWe are very close to a deal, but the man with \u2018no cards to play\u2019 should now, finally, GET IT DONE.<\/p>\n

\u201cI look forward to being able to help Ukraine, and Russia, get out of this complete and total MESS, that would have never started if I were president!\u201d<\/p>\n

In February Trump publicly criticised President Zelensky in the White House, telling him he was \u201cnot in a good position\u201d and was \u201cgambling with World War Three\u201d.<\/p>\n

The World in 10 podcast: what chance of peace?<\/p>\n

JD Vance, the US vice-president, has insisted a proposed peace plan is a \u201cfair deal for both sides\u201d and that both Ukraine and Russia would have to cede territory under its terms.<\/p>\n

How much did that proposal influence Marco Rubio\u2019s decision not to attend talks with allies in London, and where does it leave Ukraine?<\/p>\n

Scott Lucas, professor of American studies at the Clinton Institute, University College Dublin, analyses whether we are any closer to peace in Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Ukraine \u2018committed to peace efforts\u2019<\/p>\n

Ukraine has said it remains \u201ccommitted\u201d to Washington-led efforts to end the war with Russia after JD Vance threatened to abandon negotiations if a deal was not reached soon.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe emphasised that we are committed to the peace efforts of US President Donald Trump,\u201d Andriy Yermak, President Zelensky\u2019s chief of staff, said after talks in London with representatives of Kyiv\u2019s allies.<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cWe are grateful to our partners for their firm support and common desire to end the war as soon as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

British MPs and lords banned from Russia<\/p>\n

Russia has added 21 British parliamentarians to its list of UK citizens banned from entering the country.<\/p>\n

They include six members of the House of Lords and 15 MPs from Labour, the Liberal Democrats, the Scottish National Party and the Democratic Unionist Party.<\/p>\n

Russia\u2019s foreign ministry said that they had made \u201chostile statements and unfounded accusations\u201d against Moscow.<\/p>\n

The Kremlin maintains extensive lists of foreign officials, business figures, journalists and others who are barred from entering Russian territory, mostly from countries officially designated as \u201cunfriendly\u201d.<\/p>\n

Germany expels Russian \u2018saboteurs\u2019<\/p>\n

The German government has said it recently expelled \u201cnumerous\u201d Russian agents as it fights a growing threat from acts of sabotage guided by Moscow.<\/p>\n

The authorities are doing \u201ceverything in our power to thwart \u2026 Russian espionage, sabotage and cyberattacks\u201d, Sonja Kock, an interior ministry spokeswoman, said at a regular press conference.<\/p>\n

Russian intelligence services operating in Germany have been \u201crecently weakened by the expulsion of numerous agents\u201d, Kock said, without specifying the number expelled or the timeline.<\/p>\n

German media reported that Russian intelligence services were believed to have employed low-level operatives in a plot to plant explosive devices on DHL cargo aircraft<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Such \u201cdisposable\u201d agents had no position within the security services and were usually recruited via messaging apps, according to reports by S\u00fcddeutsche Zeitung and the public broadcaster WDR.<\/p>\n

Macron responds to US ultimatum<\/p>\n

President Macron\u2019s office has issued a response to America\u2019s demand that Ukraine and Russia must give up land as part of a peace deal.<\/p>\n

\u201cUkraine\u2019s territorial integrity and European aspirations are very strong requirements for Europeans,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

The latest round of diplomacy comes after a fresh wave of Russian airstrikes that shattered a brief Easter truce.<\/p>\n

US gives ultimatum to Russia and Ukraine<\/p>\n

The Americans have made an \u201cexplicit proposal\u201d to both sides in the Ukraine conflict, and have warned that they were prepared to walk away from the negotiating table if Kyiv and Moscow do not agree to the terms, JD Vance has said.<\/p>\n

He told reporters in India: \u201cThat means the Ukrainians and the Russians are both going to have to give up some of the territory they currently own.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read our full report on the fractious negotiations here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Vance claims US proposal is \u2018very fair\u2019\"US<\/p>\n

JD Vance speaking in India this week<\/p>\n

PRAKASH SINGH\/BLOOMBERG\/GETTY IMAGES<\/p>\n

JD Vance, the US vice-president, has said the US proposal for peace in Ukraine would \u201cfreeze\u201d the conflict along current frontlines.<\/p>\n

Vance, who is visiting India, said the deal was a \u201cvery fair proposal\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going to see if the Europeans, the Russians, the Ukrainians are ultimately able to get this thing over the finish line,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s now time to take, if not the final step, one of the final steps, which is at a broad level, the parties saying, \u2018we\u2019re gonna stop the killing, we\u2019re gonna freeze the territorial lines at some level close to where they are and we are actually going to put in place the long-term, diplomatic settlement that hopefully will lead to long-term peace\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

What does the US \u2018final offer\u2019 entail? <\/p>\n

The US submitted a \u201cfinal offer\u201d to Ukraine at the peace talks in Paris last week, according to Axios, a news website. US negotiators pulled out of follow-up talks in London this week after Ukraine refused to sign the document.<\/p>\n

The US peace deal would give Russia:<\/b><\/p>\n

\u2022 US recognition of Russian sovereignty over Crimea
\u2022 Freezing the frontlines, giving Russia control of occupied parts of Donetsk, Lukhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia
\u2022 Acceptance that Ukraine would not join Nato but \u201ccould\u201d become a member of the EU
\u2022 The easing of post-2014 sanctions on Russia
\u2022 Economic co-operation between Russia and the US on energy and industry<\/p>\n

The US peace deal would give Ukraine:<\/b><\/p>\n

\u2022 A \u201crobust security guarantee\u201d from European and non-European countries
\u2022 Russian withdrawal from the parcel of land in Kharkiv it currently occupies
\u2022 Free navigation along the River Dnieper
\u2022 Compensation \u2014 although the text does not say how this will be funded
\u2022 Sovereignty of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, although the facility would be run by the US with electricity shared between Russia and Ukraine<\/p>\n

Putin \u2018open to talks\u2019 but Russian attacks continue<\/p>\n

President Putin suggested this week that he would be happy to meet Zelensky<\/a> face to face as the Kremlin said it would be open to a truce on civilian targets.<\/p>\n

The Russian leader had already made the surprising offer of a 30-hour ceasefire to coincide with Easter, during which Ukraine accused Russia of continuing sporadic attacks.<\/p>\n

However, Russian forces continue to attack civilian targets, including a strike on a bus in the Ukrainian city of Marhanets on Wednesday morning, killing at least nine people.<\/p>\n

Zelensky: Russia guilty of brutal war crimes <\/p>\n

President Zelensky has accused Russia of committing a \u201cbrutal\u201d war crime after a drone strike killed nine people on a bus in the Ukrainian town of Marhanets.<\/p>\n

The Ukrainian leader said the drone had hit \u201can ordinary bus\u201d and said similar attacks happen \u201cpractically on a daily basis\u201d.<\/p>\n

In his first remarks since US negotiators withdrew from peace talks in London, Zelensky said Ukraine wanted an \u201cimmediate, full, and unconditional ceasefire\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was the proposal put forward by the United States on March 11 of this year \u2014 and it was absolutely reasonable. This is absolutely possible \u2014 but only if Russia agrees and stops the killing,\u201d he wrote on X.<\/p>\n

\u201cPreserving lives must be a shared top priority for all partners.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rubio quit talks after Ukraine ceasefire demand\"Secretary<\/p>\n

Marco Rubio decided not to travel to London<\/p>\n

JULIEN DE ROSA\/REUTERS<\/p>\n

Further negotiations in London were cancelled after Ukraine was reported to have insisted that the talks should focus on an initial 30-day ceasefire rather than respond to President Trump\u2019s ultimatum.<\/p>\n

A US official told Axios: \u201cThe decision was made for the secretary to not travel to London. Instead, the US delegation will continue to engage in conversations with UK and Ukrainian counterparts.\u201d<\/p>\n

After the US withdrew, David Lammy spoke to Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, by telephone on Tuesday night. <\/p>\n

Lammy described the call as \u201cproductive\u201d and said it was \u201ca critical moment\u201d for Ukraine, Britain and Euro-Atlantic security. Rubio said that Keith Kellogg, the US special envoy, would represent the White House in London and that he hoped to see \u201csubstantive\u201d talks between officials.<\/p>\n

\u2018We are ready to negotiate \u2014 but not to surrender\u2019<\/p>\n

Ukraine\u2019s deputy prime minister has said the country will not \u201csurrender\u201d and would never recognise Russian sovereignty of Crimea.<\/p>\n

Yulia Svyrydenko said her country would not accept a \u201cfrozen conflict disguised as a peace\u201d.<\/p>\n

It came after President Trump made a \u201cfinal offer\u201d to end the war that included US recognition of Crimea in exchange for freezing the conflict along the current front lines.<\/p>\n

\u201cUkraine is ready to negotiate \u2014 but not to surrender,\u201d Svyrydenko wrote on X. \u201cAnd if Nato membership is not granted, Ukraine will require binding security guarantees \u2026 strong enough to deter future aggression, and clear enough to ensure lasting peace.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, has accused President Zelensky of \u201ctrying to litigate this peace negotiation…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":44599,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7655],"tags":[24667,22470,19289,2998,18041,332,24668,1757,24666,771],"class_list":{"0":"post-44598","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-russia","8":"tag-very","9":"tag-close","10":"tag-deal","11":"tag-latest","12":"tag-peace","13":"tag-russia","14":"tag-says","15":"tag-trump","16":"tag-ukraine-russia","17":"tag-war"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114388870640309339","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44598","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44598"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44598\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/44599"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44598"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44598"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44598"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}