Posted on 02/16/2025 7:58:55 AM PST by bimboeruption
As Donald Trump and his officials rip up three years of US rhetoric on supporting Kyiv, Volodymyr Zelenskyy is walking an unenviable diplomatic tightrope
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has had some tough weeks in the past three years, but this past one may be up there with the worst of them.
Back on Monday, in an hour-long interview with the Guardian at his Kyiv offices, the Ukrainian president was in a cautiously optimistic frame of mind. He said he had received “positive signals from the Americans” over upcoming negotiations. His team was working to fix a date for a meeting with Donald Trump, he said, and he was sure that the US president understood the importance of coordinating his position with Kyiv before talking to Russia.
Zelenskyy’s main message, which he returned to several times in the interview, was that it was vital for the US to play a key role in enforcing any potential peace settlement. If Ukraine was to be denied Nato membership, it at least required Nato-style guarantees that would deter Vladimir Putin from coming back to bite off more chunks of the country in a year or five. “Security guarantees without America are not real security guarantees,” he said, unequivocally.
But the reality of Trump’s second term can come at you fast. By Wednesday, the US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, had ruled out both Nato membership for Ukraine and any US role in enforcing a peace deal. Later that day, in a surprise announcement, Trump said he had conducted a 90-minute phone call with Putin, and gave a press conference afterwards during which he proceeded to rip up three years of US rhetoric on supporting Ukraine.
In Kyiv, the announcements hit with a shock as jarring as the wall-shaking booms from Iskander missiles that had been shot down...
(Excerpt) Read more at theguardian.com ...
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It had been a “bad war to get into” for Ukraine, said Trump, suggesting it was Kyiv’s choice to be invaded. He declined to say that Ukraine would be an equal partner in future negotiations, disparaged Zelenskyy’s poll ratings and repeatedly emphasised that his priority was regaining the money the US had spent on aid to Ukraine over the past few years, bandying around figures that appeared to have been plucked from thin air.
He doubled down on Hegseth’s insistence that Ukraine restoring its territorial integrity was unlikely, and even suggested that Russia might in some way deserve to keep the occupied territory because “they took a lot of land and they fought for that land”. The readout of the call said Trump and Putin had talked about the “great history” of their respective nations and discussed the second world war, all of which will have been music to Putin’s ears.
Perhaps the Trump comment that caused the most anger in Ukraine was the casual remark in a television interview that “they may be Russian some day, they may not be Russian some day, but we’re gonna have all this money in there and I said I want it back.” It was a flippant dismissal of Ukraine’s existential fight to defend itself from Russian occupation, wrapped up in a demand for cash. _________________________________________________
IOW, ZELENSKY, YOU'RE FIRED! Your gravy train has come to a screeching halt.
Fk KEEEEEEEEEEeeeeeve. Zel will be lucky to remain living.
The truth is that Ukraine and Belarus have been buffer states between Russia and the west. Trump and Putin are now discussing their partition. If Europe wants to continue to fund the war and Ukraine, they can certainly do so. They could cause an economic collapse in Russia followed by political change or revolution there. Trump is looking for the off ramp for the U.S. in the matter.
Zelensky will exile himself to Egypt where he has a villa and billions of U.S. dollars. Ypthe day Trump audits U.S. aid to Ukraine, Z will flee.
Exactly. We don’t have a dig in this hunt. Eff Ukraine, Russia, and the whole EU for that matter.
Sugar Daddy USA died.
Or they could not. This has been the conundrum for the "European-Biden" strategy. When one enters a playing field, there is always to possibility of an outcome not planned....
After all, the Kansas City Chiefs and Harris-Walz were teams which had planned to win.
This pervert of a comedian went into high office similar to a certain bartender getting to be a member of the House. They were both selected by the Deep State.
FAKE UK mews. “Iskander missiles that had been shot down”
Russian missiles don’t get shot down The Ukies don’t have any more anti-missile protection other than the core of Kiev.
Another thermal powerplant was taken out of commission in the last 6 hours.
So were those missiles shot down but conveniently landed on a thermal powerplant in a precise strike, just falling there after coke head global homo claims to have shot down 150% of all missiles and drones. This utter propaganda would make Josehp G blush, not to mention that Iraqi guy... All is fine...
The Guardian -trash read no further.
The handwriting has been on the wall since Trump’s run for office this latest election. Z probably hoped FJB would pull off another improbable win or if not, that Trump really wouldn’t have the brass to flat disengage from the Ukrainian situation. Z lost that bet. Russia is a direct threat to Europe .... if there are to be ‘security guarantees’, the Euroweenies need to step up & provide them ... good luck with that, considering the bad shape they’re in currently. Uncle Sugar USA is no longer handing out ‘sweets’.
Ukraine made the relentlessly stupid mistake of relying on others for their defense.
That encouraged Russia’s attack.
Let that be a lesson to all countries in the future to sufficiently provide for their own defense.
We own Ukraine. We paid for it. We’ll damned well decide its fate, and Z man can STFU.
Hahaha. Trump is so unfathomably inscrutable to these people, it is hilarious. Churchill’s axiom for Russia actually fits Trump well - “He is a mystery wrapped in a riddle inside an enigma”.
Zelenskyy's meeting with Harris and spat with Trump reveal a growing partisan divide on Ukraine
Trump blames Ukraine's Zelenskiy for starting war with Russia
Guess Zelensky should look up the acronym "FAFO"...
;^)
the ukraine war cheerleaders have a ton of blood on their hands.
Ukraine made the relentlessly stupid mistake of relying on others for their defense.
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I knew they were in trouble early on in the war. Russian columns were just sitting there and not being hammered by Ukrainian air power.
“I don’t know how this war will finish,” he said. (zelensky)
He should ask himself why everyone else does.
Biden is corrupt and had little to say about the state department that wanted to harm Russia by spending Trillions from our good tax payers. This is a neocon Blinken, Sullivan, Newland war from the Cohens of the institute of war.
They killed millions of Ukrainians. They all and their team need to be hung up by their feet from lampposts by piano wire and left to hand until only their deviant Skeltons remain.
Talk about mass murderers in the same name as Pol Pot and Charman Mow. These destructive Jewish neocon Ukrainians exports to the USA always wanted Deaths to millions of Christian and orthodox Christians and never once did not want the Ukraine to kill as many Russian Slavs and Ukie slaves for what reason? WWIII? A new Jewish country.
the USA in just the last few decades have sent more money and more lethal aid to Isreal than all of the entire world combined. And both parties are complacent on these Trillions of thefts from the USA working citizens.
If you disagree about the money that is poured into Isreal vs the rest of the world over the last 20 years, I’m open to a non-bias link to prove otherwise.
Both parties are complicit. The Gop for religious reasons and the Dems because the Jewish voters at less than 3% [ have Billions to spend on elections favoring the Dems]
Your rant reeks of antisemitism.
Not sure why anyone is surprised. Trump is nothing if not consistent. Ukraine can’t expel Russia, and we can’t keep funding a stalemate. Ukraine should be happy we helped them as much as we have, otherwise there would be no discussions, as all of Ukraine would already be part of Russia again.
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