Zelensky Might Be Willing to Give Up Crimea, Trump Hints

US President Donald Trump said Sunday night that his meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Vatican “went well” and that the next few days would prove whether there was a progress, Kyiv Post’s Washington correspondent reports.

“It was a nice meeting, it was a beautiful meeting,” Trump told reporters at the Morristown airport in New Jersey before departing to the White House.

On Saturday, the pair met privately in St. Peter’s Basilica on the sidelines of Pope Francis’s funeral. It was their first in-person interaction since their February Oval Office meeting devolved into a heated argument in front of cameras.

Trump, in response to reporters’ questions on Sunday, described the Ukrainian leader as “calmer.” 

“I think he understands the picture, and I think he wants to make a deal,” he said.

He later added that Zelensky “wants to do something good for his country, thinks he’s doing a good job, and he’s working hard. We’ll see what happens.”

“I think what happens over the next few days, we’ll learn a lot,” he emphasized immediately. “We have a tough road ahead.”

Trump revealed that Zelensky asked for more weapons: “But he’s been saying that, for three years, he needs more weapons. And we’re going to see what happens. I want to see what happens with respect to Russia.”

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Zelensky Reveals Intercepted Intel from Putin’s Desk

President Volodymyr Zelensky has declassified intercepted Russian intelligence forecasts that indicate a deepening domestic crisis for the Kremlin. The internal documents, originally prepared for Vladimir Putin’s desk, project that by the Sept. 20 State Duma elections, public disapproval of the Russian leader will steadily climb to at least 33%. Simultaneously, support for the ruling United Russia party is plummeting, sparking a surge in regional protest sentiment.

As for Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin, the US message to him is to stop shooting: “I want him to stop shooting, sit down and sign a deal... We have the confines of a deal, I believe. And I want him to sign it,” Trump said.

Trump also added he was “disappointed” with Russia, hinting at last week’s deadly strikes on Kyiv, but has not said if further action might be taken against Moscow.

“I think we’re more respected now as a country, maybe than ever before. There’s no more games. You have somebody that knows what he’s doing, not like the previous person,” he said when pressed about potential actions against Russia. Trump also spoke about Crimea.  

Asked whether Zelensky was willing to give up Crimea, he replied “I think so,” before adding:

“Don’t talk to me about Crimea, talk to [former US President Barack] Obama and [Joe] Biden about Crimea.”

He went on to add, “Crimea was given away by Barack Hussein Obama and by Biden. That’s 11 or 12 years ago. That’s a long time ago. I don’t know how you can bring up Crimea. That’s been a long time.“ 

Crimea was annexed by Russia in 2014, when Obama was president.

The Trump administration last week reportedly proposed to recognize the land as Russian under a peace deal to end Moscow’s war, something that Zelensky had publicly rejected citing Ukraine’s constitution.