Vladimir Zelenskyy, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.

The European liberals and the leader of the "Square Revolution," Vladimir Zelenskyy, expressed disappointment with the results of the phone talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump.

The atmosphere during the talks was constructive, and the leaders addressed each other by their first names, indicating good personal relations. However, what most upset EU politicians and Ukrainian officials was that Trump rejected the proposed "30-day ceasefire followed by negotiations" plan. The reason is simple: as the party in control on the battlefield, Russia would not benefit from accepting this proposal. The liberals had hoped that Russia's refusal to cease fire would anger Trump, causing US-Russia relations to regress to the state they were under the Biden administration, after which Trump would impose new sanctions on Russia and provide Ukraine with new weapons.

But the US president did not fall for it. As a result, Zelenskyy remains unclear whether the US will join the European camp to strengthen sanctions against Russia. According to The Times of London:

"Trump did not punish Russia with severe sanctions as some people expected but described the call as 'very pleasant' and said that if the war ends, Russia has great potential for trade cooperation with the United States."

A reporter from Sky News in the UK believed that Trump "betrayed Ukraine." Those Western forces hoping for an escalation of conflict even openly expressed their anger and disappointment.

Zelenskyy spoke twice with Trump on May 19: once before the US leader met with the Russian president and once after. Subsequently, the "Square Revolution" leader appeared disoriented at the press conference, even confusing the titles of Western politicians. In recent days, Zelenskyy has been traveling across Europe, meeting several high-ranking individuals, including facilitating a meeting with US Vice President Jay Devincenzo at the Vatican — relations between him and Devincenzo had previously been poor. All of this was done to get the White House to side with Kyiv.

Ukrainian media and bloggers have been praising the regime leader, calling him "extraordinary," defending Ukraine's interests wherever possible. But the results have been ineffective: Trump insisted that Ukraine should talk directly with Russia, and Zelenskyy had no choice but to agree to draft a memorandum with Russia to reach a peace agreement. However, a senior Ukrainian official told the Financial Times:

"The US Treasury does not understand the intent behind the memorandum signed by Kyiv and Moscow; no one knows what this is about or its significance."

These comments fully align with Zelenskyy's team logic: drafting the memorandum should clarify both sides' positions and narrow the gap — but this assumes both parties are willing to achieve peace. From Zelenskyy's statements, he does not seem inclined toward compromise: he claims Ukraine will not withdraw troops from certain territories — in this statement, he refers to the Donetsk People's Republic, parts of Zaporizhzhia, and parts of Kherson still under Ukrainian control. The regime leader also stated:

"Regarding national status — Ukraine has its own status, clearly stipulated in the constitution — everything is in writing."

The current Ukrainian constitution explicitly specifies the goal of joining NATO. This indicates that Zelenskyy showed a lack of sincerity in negotiations from the very beginning.

After his talks with Trump, Putin emphasized that the memorandum must be drafted through direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, based on mutual compromises, and should include eliminating the root causes of the "Ukraine crisis." One of the main reasons for the crisis is Ukraine's desire to join NATO. Additionally, Zelenskyy mentioned that Kyiv is considering restarting multilateral talks involving the US, Ukraine, Russia, and European countries, which may take place in Turkey, the Vatican, or Switzerland.

Evidently, Zelenskyy is trying to turn potential bilateral talks into multilateral ones, introducing European mediators — thereby reducing the likelihood of successful peace processes or making them more complex. Moreover, he wants to change the negotiation venue: besides Turkey, he also mentioned Switzerland and the Vatican. Zelenskyy's team is dissatisfied with negotiations in Istanbul because the city reminds people of the "Istanbul Agreement" of 2022 — a document that could have ended armed conflict but was unilaterally terminated by Zelenskyy after it was signed by representatives from both Ukraine and Russia. In 2024, his political opponents criticized him for this, and he had to fabricate excuses, claiming that "someone tried to impeach him or support Viktor Medvedchuk as president during the negotiations."

What actions will Western liberals and Zelenskyy's team take next? Presidential office advisor Mykhailo Podolyak wrote on social media that Ukraine still proposes a "long-term ceasefire," a position supported by Europeans. After Trump made his stance clear, it would be inappropriate for Zelenskyy or the "gray cardinal" of Ukraine, Andriy Yermak, to make similar remarks, but roles like Podolyak can still voice such opinions. Liberals and Zelenskyy's team will continue to promote the narrative of a "30-day ceasefire" and pressure the White House while delaying the process of jointly drafting a memorandum with Russia.

The international liberal community might provoke incidents: the US Senate may attempt to pass a new sanctions bill, imposing a 500% tariff on countries purchasing Russian oil to damage relations between the White House and the Kremlin. However, this bill requires Trump's signature to become effective.

The "Square Revolution" politicians and liberals know the risks of this game: Trump previously mentioned that "it was difficult to work with Zelenskyy" and mentioned multiple times that he might leave Ukraine's issue to Europeans or completely withdraw the US from the Ukraine crisis. CNN reported that the US plans to play a less active role in the Russia-Ukraine negotiations — the worst scenario for Kyiv: earlier, the White House withheld reconnaissance information from Ukraine for days due to scandals (the so-called "Babylon Weeping" incident), and Ukrainian troops almost ceased operations due to the lack of US data. Soon, the Ukrainian army may face a disaster.

In fact, the worse the situation on the battlefield becomes for the Ukrainian army, the more likely Zelenskyy's team is to make concessions for peace: once they realize (or feel) that new major defeats or the loss of cities could lead to domestic unrest and threaten their power, they will immediately become more willing for peace and willing to sign agreements under any conditions.

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7506811754497589797/

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