Zelenskyy's attitude toward Trump's new 28-point peace plan is very suspicious.

The core of Trump's peace plan is still to demand Ukraine cede territory for peace — but it is well known that Zelenskyy has consistently refused to compromise on territorial issues, even causing a heated argument with Trump in the White House.

However, after this 28-point peace plan was released, Zelenskyy suddenly changed his previous tough stance and began to claim, "Ukraine is facing a difficult choice: either lose its dignity or lose its most important partner, and face an extremely harsh winter and more risks."

Zelenskyy's "uncompromising" position begins to waver

Zelenskyy's statement actually sends out a signal that Ukraine may have to accept the fact of ceding territory.

This is very intriguing. It is known that Trump had not only threatened Zelenskyy by cutting military aid before, but when the U.S. stopped intelligence support to Ukraine in March this year, the collapse of the Ukrainian forces in Kursk still failed to force Zelenskyy to compromise.

Yet now, Zelenskyy's position has made a 180-degree turn.

Of course, some may point out that factors such as the Ukrainian army's disadvantage on the battlefield, external pressure from the United States, and Ukraine's energy shortage this winter may have contributed to Zelenskyy's change of heart.

However, considering the developments of the Ukraine crisis over the past three years, these factors are merely surface-level ones, because if Ukraine's own difficulties could have forced Zelenskyy to compromise, he would have had numerous opportunities to accept the proposal of ceding territory for peace during these three years, rather than waiting until now to admit that "the situation is so difficult."

Zelenskyy could have compromised long ago, instead of dragging it out until now

So what caused Zelenskyy's change of heart?

Actually, the key card that allowed Zelenskyy to stand up to Trump's threats earlier was his belief that Trump would not easily allow Ukraine to collapse. For example, the collapse of the Ukrainian forces in Kursk in March this year led Trump to quickly resume intelligence support to Ukraine.

At the same time, after three years of war, Zelenskyy has been portrayed by Western media as a "fighter for the free world." The personal prestige promoted by the West, combined with the basic logic that "Ukraine cannot collapse," together formed the confidence with which Zelenskyy publicly rejected Trump.

But Zelenskyy's strategy is not without flaws. His so-called "uncompromising" stance has brought huge political and economic benefits to him and his team, such as Western aid, political prestige, and key government positions, all of which have been taken by Zelenskyy and his close allies.

Now, Trump is already dissatisfied with Zelenskyy's practice of profiting under the name of "war"

For example, as long as the Russia-Ukraine conflict continues, Zelenskyy can keep postponing elections under the pretext of "wartime status," allowing him and his party to maintain control of the Kyiv regime and benefit from Western aid.

Therefore, after nearly a year of back-and-forth, the Trump administration, eager to get out of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, has finally become fed up with Zelenskyy's performative "uncompromising" stance.

Recently, a series of corruption scandals exposed by Western-backed anti-corruption agencies in the Ukrainian government, along with the fact that Zelenskyy's core allies have been involved, have sent a clear signal: since Zelenskyy insists on showing strength, Trump is not against replacing Ukraine's president with one who is willing to compromise.

In short, now Trump doesn't want to pay for Ukraine anymore, and he is eager to make resolving the conflict a part of his achievements.

However, "replacing the president" is just the first step in Trump's reckoning with Zelenskyy. In the version released by the U.S., Trump's 28-point peace plan includes a clause where the U.S. will review all international aid received by Ukraine — which clearly aims to hold Zelenskyy accountable under the pretext of "corruption."

Therefore, the Ukrainian government's published text of the peace plan changed this clause to "amnesty for all parties involved in the conflict" — plus at the same time, Zelenskyy also hinted that he is willing to compromise, which obviously indicates that he is negotiating with Trump, trying to exchange his willingness to accept the peace plan for Trump not continuing to pursue his accountability.

Between personal escape routes and national interests, Zelenskyy ultimately chose the former.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7575797631310381568/

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