Putin's potential Ukraine deal with Trump
Russian President Vladimir Putin may request official recognition of occupied Ukrainian territories during an upcoming summit with Donald Trump, The Moscow Times reports, citing The Wall Street Journal and European and Ukrainian diplomats.
In return, according to WSJ sources, Putin might offer to withdraw troops from other regions of Ukraine. These are the Sumy, Kharkiv, and Dnipropetrovsk regions, which the Russian army entered during its offensive this summer.
Trump, who reportedly wants to reach an agreement with the Kremlin, could accept the Russian president's demands. However, Kyiv and European governments would most likely reject these demands, according to WSJ sources. This could lead to a situation where Trump accuses Ukraine of prolonging the war, cuts off military and intelligence support, and possibly withdraws completely from the diplomatic process, the publication notes. This would leave Moscow and Kyiv to face each other alone in a war Trump calls "Biden's war."
Sources familiar with the situation told The Telegraph that Kyiv is not prepared to accept the international recognition of territories annexed by Russia but could agree to a ceasefire along the front line.
However, The Telegraph notes that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledges that the military liberation of the territories occupied by Putin is impossible and that diplomatic solutions must be sought to end the conflict.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
