President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, has accused Ukrainian leader, Volodymyr Zelenskyy of jeopardising an imminent peace deal to end the war with Russia.
One of the big issues in the peace deal which Ukraine has frowned on is the ceding of some of its territories to Russia.
Trump gave the hint that the US would be willing to formally recognise Russia’s seizure of Crimea as part of any agreement.
Trump said that a deal to end the war was close and its now left for both warring nations to accept or reject it.
Before now, Trump had threatened to abandon the peace deal especially if the nations make it difficult for him in his effort to end the war.
Trump attacked the Ukrainian President for complaining that his country was unwilling to cede Crimea to Russia.
Trump wrote on social media that “Crimea was lost years ago in 2014, when Barack Obama was president, and its control is not even a point of discussion.”
Reports that the US would be willing to recognise Crimea under Russian control have been circulating for a couple of days.
Zelenskyy on Tuesday insisted that “Ukraine will not recognise the occupation of Crimea”;, annoying Trump the more.
Trump wrote, “This statement is very harmful to the Peace Negotiations with Russia”; and accused the Ukrainian leader of making “inflammatory statements”; that “ make it so difficult to settle this War”;.
“Nobody is asking Zelenskyy to recognize Crimea as Russian Territory,”; Trump wrote, implying that US was willing to do so, before accusing Ukraine of failing to defend Crimea.
“If he wants Crimea, why didn’t they fight for it eleven years ago when it was handed over to Russia without a shot being fired?”;
“I think we have a deal with Russia. We have to get a deal with Zelenskyy,”; Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “I thought it might be easier to deal with Zelenskyy. So far it’s been harder.”;
Russia unilaterally annexed Crimea in March 2014 during a political crisis in Ukraine after the ousting of the country’s pro-Russia president, Viktor Yanukovych.
