Trump meets Zelensky at the Vatican and then takes a swipe at Putin
Recently, US President Donald Trump expressed his doubts regarding Russian President Vladimir Putin and his willingness to end the war in Ukraine. Trump believed Putin may just be "playing games" and needs to be handled differently after a brief meeting with the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, during Pope Francis's funeral at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome.Secret Meeting
On his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump even said that he may have to deal with Putin because he probably is not serious when making promises to stop the war. "Maybe he doesn't want to stop the war. Maybe he's just tapping me along and needs to be dealt with differently, maybe through stronger banking restrictions or secondary sanctions," he wrote.Shocking Revelation
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The statement comes with the end of another deadly night-line in Ukraine. A Russian missile strike on Kyiv claimed 12 lives and injured 87 other people. Other strikes were reported in Sumy and other regions of Ukraine. At the same time, Putin announced that Russian forces had recaptured Kursk, the city that Ukraine seized last year. Trump condemned missile strikes on civilians by saying “There's no need for Putin to be shooting missiles into civilian areas.”.Trump’s Bold Warning
A Short Yet Significant Meeting
Trump's meeting with Zelensky was just about 15 minutes long, taking place just prior to the commencement of the services for the Pope. According to the White House, the meeting was "very productive." This made Zelensky term the meeting historic. It was really a big event for both leaders as it was the first face-to-face talk after that tense meeting in the White House back in February.
The recurring theme of their conversation was again something Trump told Zelensky before-the fact that Ukraine is not in a strong position to win the war. "You don't have the cards to play," said Trump, indicating that the former does not have the military support and international backing to fully defeat Russia. He assigned some blame on Ukraine regarding some escalations involving fighting. Putin Under Fire
Trump has increased his pressure, as always, to get a deal with Ukraine regarding what he thinks peace should look like. But so many of those offers have demanded the country's suffering through coercive and difficult bargaining provisions.
Brief Yet Important Meeting
The meeting was somewhat brief, lasting about 15 minutes, but it occurred just before the commencement of Pope Francis's funeral mass. The White House described the meeting as "very productive," while Zelensky described the meeting as "historic," implying it was a momentous occasion for both leaders. This was their first face-to-face meeting since an uncomfortable meeting at the White House in February.Urgent Peace Talks
During their talks, Trump reiterated something he had told Zelensky before, which was that Ukraine was in no position to win the war. "You don't have the cards to play," Trump said when asked about Russia's strengths in the war, suggesting a belief that Ukraine hasn't enough military strength or international support to fully counter Russian aggression. He placed some blame on Ukraine for escalating the fighting.Power Move
He has pressured Ukraine to go along with many ideas for peace that Trump has put forward. However, many of his proposals would place Ukraine in the position of having to make some tough and uncomfortable compromises.
Trump on The Push for Peace
Trump believes the situation in Ukraine is dangerous, warning that failure to engage in peace talks would result in Ukraine losing more territory-or even the entire country-in the next three years. He believes it now seems possible to reach a deal between Russia and Ukraine to end hostilities.
Earlier this year, Trump had declared Russia and Ukraine were "very close to a deal" thanks to his envoy, Steve Witkoff, who held talks with Putin. Indeed, the Kremlin has confirmed that Putin is ready to engage in direct talks with Ukraine without any preconditions attached.
For Trump, Ukraine had welcomed his suggestion about one month of cease-fire to pave the way for peaceful negotiations. But then, Russia rejected the total cease-fire. It only favored a partial agreement that allowed attacks on Ukraine's energy facilities to continue.
Trump's team has been considering a few prodigious compromises on the grounds of a peace plan. Parts of the compromises included:
Officially recognizing Crimea as part of Russia
Accepting Russia's control over four other Ukrainian regions
Committing that Ukraine would not join NATO
Lifting some sanctions against Russia
Trump argued that these would be pretty big concessions from the side of Ukraine. However, he also said that a Russia provision of not taking the "entire country" could also be viewed as a huge concession.
In one of his latest comments, Trump said, "Stopping the war and stopping Russia from taking the whole country—that's a pretty big concession on Russia's part."
Referring to stopping the Russia-to-Russia war and arresting Russia from the whole domination of the country, Trump said, "That's a pretty big concession on Russia's part."
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Challenges Ahead
Many experts and leaders believe that Trump's attempt toward peace might actually be very detrimental to Ukraine. Giving land to Russia and neutralizing Ukraine by staying out of NATO would weaken its future security. Such a compromise could also open the door for an attack by Russia at a later stage.
At the same time, Trump's comments indicate his increasing frustration with Putin. Whereas he once spoke carefully about Putin, he now openly states that the Russian leader cannot be trusted. By talking about new banking and secondary sanctions on Russia, he is clearly signaling a willingness for stronger action if necessary.
Meanwhile, the situation in Ukraine is still very grave. Cities like Kyiv and Sumy are massively under missile strikes. Civilians are being killed and injured almost on a daily basis. Despite heavy losses, Russia is determined to press on with the war.
As Trump keeps insisting on peace, it remains to be seen whether any deal would be accepted by Ukraine, Russia, and the rest of the world—and at what cost.
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