Can Trump reach a deal on Ukraine before his inauguration: Expert's assessment

The expert commented on an article from The Economist, which claimed that Trump would like to have a ready peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia before his inauguration, scheduled for January 20, 2025.

"I don't believe in this. What kind of deal before January 20, when Trump is not yet president? On the contrary, I see positive news," noted Zahorodnii.

He reminded that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov started complaining that the new Trump administration was no different from the previous one and also "doesn't want to pay attention to the oppression of Russian-speaking people."

At the same time, the expert suggested that a conversation between Trump and Putin did take place and ended "not very pleasantly" for the Russians.

"Probably, they were told things they didn’t want to hear, and they didn’t like it at all. So, I think we can expect many surprises regarding Russia, primarily. I’m convinced that under the previous Biden administration, time worked against Ukraine, but under the current administration, time works for Ukraine," Zahorodnii believes.

In his view, media rumors about focusing on the front line and any agreements are illogical, as this is something the Russians strongly dislike.

"As long as Ukrainian troops are in the Kursk region, I think it's even theoretically impossible," the expert emphasized.

Rumors about Trump’s negotiations with Putin

Last week, The Washington Post, citing sources, reported that Trump called Putin and discussed the war in Ukraine.

Specifically, the US president-elect urged the Kremlin leader not to escalate the war. He also reminded him that American soldiers are present on the territory of European countries.

Following these rumors, Russian President Vladimir Putin's press secretary Dmitry Peskov claimed that no such conversation between Putin and Trump had taken place.