US President-elect Donald Trump, who has repeatedly boasted that he could end the Russia-Ukraine war in his first 24 hours in power, is likely to call on European soldiers to enforce an 800-mile buffer zone between the Russian and Ukrainian armies.
Trump’s peace plan, outlined by three of his staffers, would see the current front line frozen in place and Ukraine agreeing to shelve its ambition to join NATO, The Telegraph reported this week.
In exchange, the US, which has been one of the biggest contributors of aid and arms to Kyiv, would reportedly pump Ukraine full of weapons to deter Russia from restarting the war.
The US would also not contribute troops to patrol and enforce the resulting buffer zone.
“We are not sending American men and women to uphold peace in Ukraine. And we are not paying for it. Get the Poles, Germans, British and French to do it,” a member of Trump’s team said, The Telegraph reported.
Before the US presidential election, in which Trump defeated his Democratic rival Vice President Kamala Harris, the Republican has criticised the scale of its military and financial support for Kyiv, which has been fighting the war with Russia since February 2022.
Donald Trump, who will return to the White House in January next year after defeating his Democratic rival Vice President Kamala Harris in the US presidential election, has on numerous occasions criticised the scale of US military and financial support for Kyiv.
Trump Speaks To Ukraine’s Zelensky
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke to Donald Trump following his US election victory.
“We agreed to maintain close dialogue and advance our cooperation. Strong and unwavering US leadership is vital for the world and for a just peace,” Zelensky said in a post on X on Wednesday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin also congratulated the Republican tycoon.
At an event, when asked whether he was open to holding talks with Trump, the Russian leader said, “Ready”.
Zelensky has repeatedly said peace cannot be established until all Russian forces are expelled and all territory captured by Moscow, including Crimea, is returned.
Russia annexed the Crimea peninsula in 2014 and holds just under 20% of Ukraine’s territory.
(With agency inputs)