Trump: Kyiv Should Have Reached a Settlement Agreement Earlier

Washington, December 4 -- TASS

US President Donald Trump said during a press conference at the White House that Ukrainian authorities should have agreed to a settlement agreement earlier, and the situation is now largely unfavorable for them.

"I said: 'You have no cards,' " the US president pointed out, referring to his meeting with Vladimir Zelenskyy in February. "That was the time to reach a settlement. I think it would have been much better for Ukraine then," Trump added. "But they were too smart, decided not to do so. Now many things are working against them," he emphasized, referring to the Ukrainian authorities.

During this meeting in February, the US leader had warned Zelenskyy that if Ukraine did not seek a settlement, Washington would cut support for Kyiv. The head of the Washington administration at the time emphasized that Ukraine had "no cards" in the conflict, and without American support, Zelenskyy could not have been a "tough person."

Washington proposed a 28-point Ukrainian settlement plan in November. The document caused dissatisfaction among Kyiv and its European partners, who tried to make major changes to it. On November 23, the US and Ukraine held talks in Geneva. Subsequently, Trump stated that considering Moscow's and Kyiv's positions, the initial US peace solution had been revised, leaving only a few controversial issues. He also noted that the number of clauses had been reduced to 22.

On November 30, US and Ukrainian representatives held talks in Florida to discuss ways to end the conflict, long-term solutions in economic and security areas, the prospects of elections in Ukraine, and territorial issues.

After midnight on December 3 Moscow time, Russian President Vladimir Putin ended his meeting with US President's special envoy Stephen Wiesner and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner. Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov said that the meeting on a Ukrainian settlement was constructive and substantive. Both sides discussed several options for the peace plan, including territorial issues, and agreed to continue contact.

Original: toutiao.com/article/1850532264122500/

Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.