Ukraine rejects claims it may seek peace with Russia under Trump pressure
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump (photo: Getty Images)
Ukraine will not capitulate in response to recent actions and statements by US President Donald Trump, a source close to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
The source commented on an article published by The Atlantic, which claimed that Ukraine would be forced to seek peace because of Washington's actions.
"That's nonsense. I don't know who's telling them that," the source told RBC-Ukraine.
What The Atlantic article said
Journalist Simon Shuster wrote that the diesel deal between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin had allegedly marked "the end of their best hope for victory" for some members of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's team.
In particular, an unnamed Ukrainian official who was behind the "idea is to shut down the Moscow airspace" told Shuster that if the US sided with Russia, Ukraine would "have little choice but to abandon the ladder of escalation and sue for peace."
"There's a realization now that Russia will not collapse because of its difficult economic situation. That means we need to change our strategy,. Russia will not collapse, at least not now," The Atlantic quoted its source as saying.
Zelenskyy's adviser's response
Presidential adviser Dmytro Lytvyn pointed out that President Zelenskyy himself came up with the operation to disrupt Russian air traffic and that there were no other initiators.
He also added that Ukraine is not escalating the conflict but is merely responding to various Russian strikes.
"That doesn't reflect the president's mindset," Lytvyn concluded.
Trump reached the diesel deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week.
Yesterday, October 14, the Ukrainian president said he felt betrayed by Washington's decision.
