TRUMP CLIMS UKRAINE AND RUSSIA ARE CLOSE TO A DEAL

Trump offers peace proposal for Ukraine and Moscow to finish 'cruel and senseless war'

 

By Joe Hutchison 

Daily Mail

Apr 25, 2025

 

 

 

President Donald Trump has called on Ukraine and Russia to meet for 'high level talks' to end their three-year war. 

In a post to his Truth Social on Friday, Trump said: 'Just landed in Rome. A good day in talks and meetings with Russia and Ukraine. 

'They are very close to a deal, and the two sides should now meet, at very high levels, to "finish it off." 

'Most of the major points are agreed to. Stop the bloodshed, NOW. We will be wherever is necessary to help facilitate the END to this cruel and senseless war!'

Earlier on Friday, the president had also demanded that Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky 'immediately' sign an agreement that would give the US access to Ukraine's mineral resources.  

His post comes after Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Russia and met with President Vladimir Putin to discuss a peace plan. 

Trump wants to broker a truce between Moscow and Kyiv, but has failed to extract any major concessions from Putin despite several rounds of negotiation. 

He has threatened to walk away from talks if he does not see progress towards a ceasefire. 

Russia continued its bombardment of Ukraine on Friday, killing three people with a drone strike on an apartment building in a southeastern city.

In a post to his Truth Social on Friday, Trump called on Ukraine and Russia to meet for 'high level talks'

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky delivers a press conference in Kyiv on April 22, 2025, amid the Russian invasion

 

Witkoff and Putin's meeting came just hours after a car exploded in the Moscow region, killing Russian General Yaroslav Moskalik. 

No one has yet claimed responsibility for what appears to have been a deliberate attack. 

On Thursday Trump had criticized Putin for a deadly missile and drone attack on Kyiv. 

When asked how he would respond if Russia did not accept a deal, Trump said Thursday: 'I won't be happy, let me put it that way. Things will happen.'

But Trump also said there had been significant progress in peace talks.

'This next few days is going to be very important. Meetings are taking place right now,' Trump told reporters on Thursday. 

'I think we're going to make a deal. I think we're getting very close.'

In a interview published Friday Trump said that 'Crimea will stay with Russia', an example of how he has pressured Kyiv to make concessions to end the war. 

'Zelensky understands that,' he continued, referring to the Ukrainian president. 'And everybody understands that it's been with them for a long time.' 

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Trump and First Lady Melania Trump are seen here arriving in Rome on Friday evening ahead of the Pope's funeral 

On Thursday Trump had criticized Putin for a deadly missile and drone attack on Kyiv

 

Trump added: 'They've had their submarines there for long before any period that we're talking about, for many years. 

'The people speak largely Russian in Crimea. But this was given by Obama. This wasn't given by Trump.' 

Ukraine has rejected ceding ground to Moscow, and says it will not accept Russian control of Crimea. 

When asked by reporters, Zelensky said he didn't want to comment on Trump's statement but repeated that recognizing occupied Ukrainian territory as Russian is a red line for his country.

Plans drawn up by Witkoff call for US recognition of Russia's control over Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula Moscow seized and annexed in 2014, as well as the removal of sanctions currently in place.

It also proposes de facto recognition of Russia's hold on areas of southern and eastern Ukraine that Moscow's forces control.

The document, which was presented to European officials last week before being passed onto their Ukrainian counterparts, also states Kyiv will have a 'robust security guarantee' with European and other friendly states acting as guarantors - but will not join NATO.

 

An explosion of a ballistic missile is seen in the sky over the city during a Russian strike in Kyiv, Ukraine on April 24, 2025

 

The American proposal was handed over last Thursday during talks in Paris, with the European counter-proposal presented at further negotiations in London on Wednesday.

The text prepared by European and Ukrainian officials defers detailed discussion about territory until after a ceasefire is concluded.

There is no mention in the document of recognizing Russian control over any Ukrainian territory.

Trump has been accusing Zelensky of prolonging the war by resisting negotiations with Putin. 

Western European leaders, however, have accused Putin of dragging his feet in the negotiations and seeking to grab more Ukrainian land while his army has battlefield momentum.

Speaking to reporters Friday as he left the White House to attend the pope's funeral, Trump said there was no deadline for the conclusion of peace talks.

'I just want to do it as fast as possible,' Trump said. Negotiators are 'pretty close' to a deal, he said.

He promised to meet with foreign leaders while in Rome, and said it was 'possible' he could meet with Zelensky. 

Zelensky said late Friday, however, that he was not sure he would make it to Rome in time for the funeral.

Witkoff's meeting with Putin on Friday was their second this month and the fourth since February.

The Kremlin released a short video of Putin and Witkoff greeting each other. 'How are you, Mr. President?' Witkoff could be heard saying. 

'Fine, just fine, thank you,' Putin responded in rare remarks in English, as the two shook hands.

Putin's foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov, who attended the talks, said the meeting lasted three hours and was 'constructive' and 'useful.' Further talks are expected.