Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday that U.S. President Donald Trump is determined to end the war before next summer. "They have said they want to do everything in June. And they will do everything to ensure that the war ends," Zelenskyy said in statements reported by the Ukrainian news agency 'Ukrinform'.
Within that timeframe, the U.S. wants to hold both the referendum in the disputed areas of Donbass and the general elections in Ukraine, postponed due to the Russian invasion.
"The Americans are proposing that the parties end the war this summer. And they will likely put pressure on the parties according to their agenda. Why this summer? We understand that their domestic affairs in the United States have an impact and will be even more relevant to them," explained the Ukrainian president, as reported by Efe news agency.
However, in this year of failed talks and frustrating attempts to end the war, almost all of Washington's pressures have been on Ukraine, while Russia, which has done everything possible to demonstrate its lack of intention to end its offensives, sometimes even verbally, has hardly suffered economic sanctions from Washington. Last week, Trump himself hung a photo of his meeting with Putin in Alaska at the White House.
Zelenski referred to the upcoming elections in the United States, the so-called "midterms," which "will be more important" for American politicians than international affairs. The U.S. Congress will be renewed in November of this year, after elections scheduled for November 3, while the Senate will be partially renewed on that election day, as 35 of the 100 seats in that chamber are up for grabs.
The reality is that peace remains far off for two reasons. One of them is territorial: Russia demands territory in the Donetsk region that it has not yet conquered and that could take years to occupy. Kiev refuses this possibility. In turn, Ukraine demands security guarantees that require U.S. intervention in case Russia breaks the peace agreement, as well as a deployment with Western troops to prevent a new Russian invasion, but the Kremlin refuses to accept it. The rest of the issues, of lesser importance, can be resolved.
In the meantime, Zelenskyy pointed out that they have already proposed a sequenced plan to the U.S. representatives to reach peace, specifying the steps to be taken by each of the parties involved. "If the Russians are ready to end the war, it is important to establish the terms," added the Ukrainian president.