President Trump said during a press conference with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre that Russia would make concessions for peace if it agreed not to invade Ukraine, as the American president struggles to broker even a limited truce between Moscow and Kyiv.
Sides are “very close” to reaching an agreement
Asked what concessions Russia was offering on Thursday, Trump replied, “stopping the war,” suggesting that not “taking the whole country” is a “pretty big concession.”
According to Trump, the sides are “very close” to reaching an agreement on Ukraine. The American president also stressed that Russia is not an obstacle to peace.
“I don’t think Russia is an obstacle to peace,” he said.
Trump also believed that “Russia will agree to a deal that will be supported by both Ukraine and Europe.”
The head of the White House also said that the US is putting a lot of pressure on Russia over the air strikes. Trump added:
“We’re putting a lot of pressure on Russia, and Russia knows that, and people that are close to it now, or he wouldn’t be talking right now.”
The question of whether the US will withdraw from the negotiations in the absence of an agreement should be asked in two weeks, Trump said. This means that the US decision to withdraw from the peace process could be announced by the White House around May 10.
Crimea issue
On April 23, Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social that Volodymyr Zelensky’s statement about Kyiv’s refusal to legally recognise Crimea as Russian is very damaging to peace talks with Russia, since the peninsula was lost many years ago with the “help” of President Barack Obama and is not even up for discussion.
“If he wants Crimea, why didn’t they fight for it eleven years ago when it was handed over to Russia without a single shot being fired?” Trump wrote.
Earlier, Zelensky, responding to a question about Ukraine’s readiness to recognise Crimea as part of Russia, asked what Russia would give up in return. “If we give up NATO, what will Russia give up?” Zelensky told reporters.
US Vice President J.D. Vance said that the conflict in Ukraine requires final steps to end hostilities and consolidate borders at a level close to the current one. He also said that the parties to the Ukrainian conflict should agree to Washington’s proposals. Otherwise, the US may withdraw from the diplomatic process. The vice president noted that in order to achieve peace, both Russia and Ukraine will need to cease hostilities and make territorial compromises.
US conditions on Ukrainian peace deal
Bloomberg, citing sources, reported that Washington, as part of a peace agreement to resolve the Ukrainian conflict, will demand that Moscow recognise Kyiv’s right to its own army and defence industry.
The agency noted that the US agreement to preserve Ukraine’s right to an equipped and manned army contradicts Russia’s previously stated demands. However, it confirms the desire of Trump’s administration to secure concessions not only from Kyiv, but also from Moscow, because in this case, Russia would have to abandon its stated goal of demilitarising Ukraine.
“Until now, critics have viewed the US plan as being in line with Russian interests, in part because it requires Ukraine to abandon its bid to join NATO,” the Bloomberg reports.
The agency’s sources also said that, in addition, as part of the settlement agreement, the US wants Russia to return the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) to Ukraine, which would then come under US control to guarantee energy supplies to both sides. At the same time, Washington hopes to return to Kyiv the territories in the Kharkiv region that have come under Russian control and guarantee Ukraine access to the Dnieper River, which runs along the line of contact.
Zelensky on the fresh deal with the US
The US and Ukraine have agreed on a new deal on rare earth minerals, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said at a joint press conference with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, which was broadcast by the Ukrainian leader’s press service on YouTube.
The document was agreed on April 23 in London during the second round of talks between representatives of the US, Ukraine and Europe on resolving the Ukrainian conflict.
According to Zelensky, the talks were “difficult but constructive” and the meeting itself “ended not with disagreements but with a desire to continue working.” The agreement on rare earth metals will be fully ready on April 26, the Ukrainian president noted.
During the meeting in London, Ukraine demanded that clauses contradicting its Constitution be removed from the agreement on mineral resources, Zelensky said.
“Our team, the European team and representatives of the United States held constructive talks, and the relevant clauses appeared on paper. Anything that contradicts our values or our Constitution cannot be included in any agreement,” the Ukrainian president said.
The Ukrainian leader added that the document agreed in the UK is on the desk of US President Donald Trump now.
Ukraine and the US have been discussing a rare earths deal since February. Kyiv refused to sign the initial version of the deal, in particular because of a clause on compensation for Washington’s assistance.
Later, the Ukrainian side was given a tougher version of the draft, which covers all mineral resources, including oil and gas, throughout Ukraine, as well as infrastructure — railways, pipelines, ports and processing plants. At the end of March, Zelensky said that it was still too early to talk about an agreement, as there was no final version at that time and the US side was constantly changing the terms.
