Trump Accuses Ukraine's Zelensky of Harmful Statements on Russia Talks

April 24, 2025 | 09:51 pm

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - US President Donald Trump criticized Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday, April 23, 2025. Trump accused Zelensky of making highly damaging statements after refusing to hand over Crimea to Russia in a peace deal.

According to Al Jazeera, on Tuesday, Zelensky rejected handing over the territory to Russia in any deal before Wednesday's talks in London between US, European, and Ukrainian officials. Zelensky stated, “There is nothing to talk about – it is our land, the land of the Ukrainian people,” in response to US media reports that Trump was prepared to accept the annexed Crimea as part of Russia's territory.

In a post on the Truth Social platform on Wednesday, Trump accused Zelensky of escalating tensions by refusing to legally recognize the handover of Crimea to Russia. “This statement is very harmful to the Peace Negotiations with Russia,” Trump said. 

He added that Russia invaded the Crimean Peninsula and re-annexed it in 2014 without a single shot being fired.

“It’s inflammatory statements like Zelensky’s that makes it so difficult to settle this War,” Trump said. “He can have Peace or, he can fight for another three years before losing the whole Country.”

White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said that Trump's patience is wearing thin after several weeks of US-led negotiations.

US Vice President JD Vance explained that Ukraine and Russia must reach an agreement on the disputed territory. “That means the Ukrainians and the Russians are both going to have to give up some of the territory they currently own,” Vance said while traveling to India. Freezing the front lines would mean Ukraine losing large grounds to Russia.

However, Vance did not specify which territories Russia should hand over. “It’s time for them to either say ‘yes’, or for the United States to walk away from this process,” Vance was quoted as saying by France24.

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