PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Ukrainian community groups in the Valley were waiting anxiously to see if a ceasefire or something would come from the high-stakes meeting between President Donald Trump and Russia’s President Putin on Friday. One of those groups was Cactus and Tryzub, which formed after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
No ceasefire deal was reached. Prior to the meeting, President Trump had said he would be unhappy if he walked away without some sort of deal.
“(I’m) not surprised,” said Olya Johnson following that outcome. She was born in Ukraine and is now a U.S. citizen living in Phoenix.
“The reality is, they can agree (on) whatever they want to agree, but if the Ukrainian president will not be part of this conversation, if European allies will not be part of this conversation, it will not go anywhere,” said Johnson.
She did not have much hope going into the meeting.
“The fact that we were so welcoming to (Putin) and extending him with open arms versus the way we treated President (Volodymyr) Zelenskyy when he came here is actually quite appalling,” said Katrina Schaffner, whose grandparents were Holocaust survivors from Ukraine.
“I think the only way that it is acceptable to be sitting down with a war criminal like Putin is to actually encourage him to make concessions and to return all of the children that have been illegally kidnapped and abducted from Ukraine,” said Schaffner.
She and Johnson are both part of Cactus and Tryzub. While Johnson was not optimistic about ceasefire negotiations, her mind is on her mother in Ukraine.
“Only two weeks ago, it was actually a direct hit less than a five-minute walk away from where she lives,” said Johnson.
As world leaders try to work out a deal, she says people like her mom are waiting while facing violence.
“They are tired. The general (Ukrainian) population is tired, but still resilient,” said Johnson.
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