(Dave DeCamp, Antiwar.com) President Trump on Wednesday slammed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for rejecting the idea of Ukraine recognizing Crimea as Russian, saying the comment is hurting the peace process.
“This statement is very harmful to the Peace Negotiations with Russia in that Crimea was lost years ago under the auspices of President Barack Hussein Obama, and is not even a point of discussion,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“Nobody is asking Zelensky to recognize Crimea as Russian Territory but, if he wants Crimea, why didn’t they fight for it eleven years ago when it was handed over to Russia without a shot being fired? The area also houses, for many years before ‘the Obama handover,’ major Russian submarine bases,” the president added.
UKRAINE: Everytime the Trump administration suggests that Ukraine and Russia are getting close to agreeing to a ceasefire and commencement of peace negotiations Zelensky goes public with a statement that effectively scuttles any chance of a ceasefire. Trump is pissed. pic.twitter.com/h0U9cruLy0
— @amuse (@amuse) April 23, 2025
Trump said that “inflammatory statements” like Zelensky’s were prolonging the war. “He has nothing to boast about! The situation for Ukraine is dire — He can have Peace or, he can fight for another three years before losing the whole Country,” he said.
The spat over Crimea comes amid reports that said the US has put forward a potential ceasefire deal that would involve the US recognizing the peninsula as Russian territory. According to Axios, the deal would also involve freezing the battle lines, meaning Russia would keep the territory it currently controls.
The US would also lift sanctions imposed on Russia since 2014 and guarantee that Ukraine wouldn’t join NATO. Ukraine would receive some sort of security guarantees, the details of which are unclear, a small part of the Kharkiv Oblast that’s currently occupied by Russia, unimpeded access to the Dnieper River, and assistance for reconstruction. The deal also proposes that the US would operate the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which is under Russian control.
According to Axios, the potential deal was presented to Ukraine as a “final offer,” meaning if an agreement isn’t reached or progress isn’t made, the US could walk away from negotiations.
Vice President JD Vance on Wednesday called for Ukraine and Russia to accept the proposal. “We’ve issued a very explicit proposal to both the Russians and the Ukrainians, and it’s time for them to either say yes or for the United States to walk away from this process,” he said.
“The only way to really stop the killing is for the armies to both put down their weapons, to freeze this thing and to get on with the business of actually building a better Russia and a better Ukraine,” the vice president added.
This article originally appeared at Antiwar.com.
