Photo: Evan Vucci/AP
US President Donald Trump has said that Ukraine is supposedly ready for a ceasefire and peace talks, but he cannot yet say for sure whether Kyiv is making enough efforts to achieve this goal.
He said this on 19 May during an event in honour of law enforcement agencies at the White House, Interfax-Ukraine quoted him as saying .
“I said: Ukrainians are ready for a ceasefire. They are ready for peace talks,” Trump said.
The final decision will be made in a few weeks
Answering journalists’ questions about whether he believes Ukraine’s efforts are sufficient, Trump said:
“I’d rather tell you in about two weeks, because I can’t say yes or no.”
About Zelensky: “A strong guy who is not easy to deal with”
According to the US president, he considers Volodymyr Zelenskyy a strong leader, but at the same time noted that he probably “wants to stop”, meaning to end the war.
“This is a very bad thing, what is happening there. I think he wants to stop. But I could better answer that question in two or four weeks,” Trump added.
Trump’s statement came amid growing discussions in the US and Europe about the possibility of peace talks between Ukraine and Russia. Although Ukraine officially stresses the impossibility of making concessions to the aggressor without restoring its territorial integrity, Trump’s rhetoric may indicate preparations for a new diplomatic initiative by Washington.
