A feasible peace deal is in the works. It remains unclear if Zelensky will accept it. Pictured: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Photo Credit: Volodymyr Zelensky/X.
The Feb. 28 confrontation between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, U.S. President Donald Trump, and Vice-President JD Vance, remains a polarizing topic worthy of deeper context and consideration.
Many observers thought Trump and Vance were ganging up two-against-one on Zelensky. But, as U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio explains, most people don’t know what preceded that meeting.
Trump and Vance weren’t the first U.S. politicians to tell Zelensky he should be thankful. In a phone call in June of 2022, then-president Joe Biden said the same thing. Biden had just approved another $1 billion in U.S. military assistance to Ukraine when Zelensky complained about what he wasn’t getting.
As NBC reported, “Biden lost his temper, the people familiar with the call said. The American people were being quite generous, and his administration and the U.S. military were working hard to help Ukraine, he said, raising his voice, and Zelensky could show a little more gratitude.”
On Feb. 24, four days before the White House near-shouting match, Rubio told interviewer Catherine Herridge that Trump was already “very upset at President Zelensky, and in some cases rightfully so.” Rubio said he was also “personally very upset” with Zelensky.
Rubio said he, Trump, Vance, and Zelensky had offered to create a demilitarized zone in Ukrainian lands, especially those that Putin had overtaken in the war. Here, the U.S. could establish a security zone and get mineral rights.
Putin would think twice before attacking again because the U.S. are there, and the U.S. would get something indirectly back, having given Ukraine $200 billion in aid and armaments. The war ends. Win-win-win.
“[Zelensky] said, ‘Sure, we want to do this deal. It makes all the sense in the world. The only thing is, I need to run it through my legislative process. They have to approve it.’ I read two days later that Zelensky is out there saying, ‘I rejected the deal. I told him, ‘No way,’ that we’re not doing that,’” Rubio recalled.
The duplicity did not sit well with Rubio. “You start to get upset,” Rubio explained, adding it did not help that Zelensky accused Trump of living in a world of disinformation.
“We’re trying to help these guys…[Trump]’s very transparent. He’s going to tell you exactly how he feels, and he sent a message that he’s not going to get gamed here,” Rubio added.
Did Zelensky wisen up? No.
Apparently the U.S. thought they were close to a deal when Zelensky started pushing back in the room. That wasn’t smart, nor did it command respect when Zelensky showed up in what seemed like casual wear.
It was even worse when Zelensky said “Suka, blyat,” in response to Vance’s comments. The phrase can be translated, “son of a bitch.” It’s debatable whether Zelensky was stating frustration or insulting Vance. Either way, it’s not a good look.
Trump has been clear; he is done funding the Ukraine war. He said if Zelensky doesn’t participate in a deal, he would be left to “fight it out” without U.S. help. Unfortunately for Ukraine, they don’t have much left to fight with.
Vance said directly to Zelensky, “Right now, you guys are going around and forcing conscripts to the front lines because you have manpower problems…Do you disagree that you’ve had problems bringing people into your military?”
Zelensky seemed to challenge Vance’s knowledge on the matter, but after a further exchange, he conceded, “We have problems.”
Conscription has been practiced in many countries for centuries. It’s usually done formally by a government and enforced by authorities. However, the form this takes in Ukraine is disturbing and unfortunate: kidnapping and abduction.
People like U.S. Col. Douglas Magregor (Ret.) were talking as early as a year ago how any Ukrainian man between the ages of 15 and 60 might get taken from a restaurant and put on the front lines. There, Macgregor said, they would last about “four minutes.” In recent days, some disturbing abduction videos have surfaced on social media that confirm this is still happening.
Ukraine is in the same predicament the Axis powers were in World War II when they fought the Soviet Bloc. Russia had superior numbers of soldiers and, in time, armaments, that eventually prevailed.
In 1944, German General Erwin Rommel told Hitler whenever the Allies landed in France on the western front, the war was lost. Hitler replied, “I know it well,” but said the Allies would never make peace with him. So, Germany fought to the end, putting teenagers and old men alike in their Volkssturm in a doomed and defiant stand.
Thankfully, Zelensky can do better. He does not have to fight an unwinnable war until his population is decimated and his country is in ruins. A feasible peace deal is in the works. Will he take it or fight in vain?
