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'Trump needs to come out on top' — Zelensky on US president's role in ending war

by Kateryna Hodunova January 23, 2025 3:42 PM 2 min read
Volodymyr Zelensky, President of Ukraine, takes part in the Ukraine Contact Group meeting at Ramstein Air Base, Germany on Sep. 6, 2024. (Andreas Arnold/picture alliance via Getty Images)
This audio is created with AI assistance

The end of the war must be a victory for U.S. President Donald Trump, not for Russian President Vladimir Putin, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview for Bloomberg TV on Jan. 22.

Zelensky's statement comes amid Trump's calls for an end to the Russia-Ukraine war and recent threats to impose sanctions on Moscow if a "deal" is not reached soon.

"I think the issue of ending the war in Ukraine must be a victory for Trump, not for Putin. Putin is nobody for him. America is much stronger, Europe is much stronger, China is stronger than Russia. They are all players," Zelensky told Bloomberg TV.

Zelensky added that the war showed Russia's inability to fully occupy Ukraine.

"They (Russia) are big, they have a lot of weapons, and they don't spare people," he said. "We are specifically defending Europe, NATO countries. And Putin will go there."

"That's why Trump needs to come out on top. And he is capable of doing so."

According to Zelensky, Trump must conclude such an agreement that will prevent Putin from resuming the aggression further down the line. The Ukrainian president also noted that "everyone should have a plan" before they start communicating directly with Putin.

Trump has signaled his intent to meet Putin "very quickly" after taking office. While the Kremlin welcomed the remarks, it noted that no preparations for the meeting are currently underway.

Trump's team is reportedly working on arranging a call with Putin shortly after the inauguration, with the goal of initiating a settlement plan for the war in Ukraine within the first months of his presidency.

The U.S. president’s team Trump aims to preserve Ukraine's independence, though U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that both Kyiv and Moscow would have to make concessions to achieve a peace deal.

‘We want to bring stability’ — State Secretary Rubio’s position on Russia’s war against Ukraine
As state secretary, Marco Rubio will oversee the implementation of the president’s foreign policy, including that relating to Russia’s full-scale war — which wasn’t directly referred to during Donald Trump’s inauguration speech.

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