U.S. President Donald Trump has lashed out at Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, accusing him of prolonging the war by rejecting any suggestion of ceding Crimea to Russia as part of a potential peace deal.
Zelenskyy has ruled out giving up any Ukrainian territory to Russia ahead of peace talks scheduled for Wednesday in London among U.S., European, and Ukrainian officials.
“There is nothing to talk about. It is our land — the land of the Ukrainian people,” Zelenskyy said.
During similar talks held last week in Paris, U.S. officials reportedly presented a proposal that included allowing Russia to retain control of occupied Ukrainian territory as part of a peace agreement.
This is according to a European official familiar with the matter, who was not authorised to speak publicly and requested anonymity.
Trump described Zelenskyy’s resistance as “very harmful” to negotiations.
“Nobody is asking Zelenskyy to recognise Crimea as Russian territory, but if he wants Crimea, why didn’t they fight for it eleven years ago?
“Eleven years ago, it was handed over to Russia without a shot being fired,” Trump wrote on social media.
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