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KYIV, UKRAINE: US President Donald Trump floated the thought that Ukraine “may beryllium Russian someday“, arsenic his Vice President JD Vance gears up to conscionable Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky aboriginal this week.
Pushing for an extremity to the astir three-year warfare with Russia, Trump discussed the struggle successful an interrogation with broadcaster Fox News that aired Monday.
“They whitethorn marque a deal, they whitethorn not marque a deal. They whitethorn beryllium Russian someday, oregon they whitethorn not beryllium Russian someday,“ helium said.
Trump besides emphasised reaping a instrumentality connected concern with US assistance to Ukraine, suggesting a commercialized for Kyiv's earthy resources, specified arsenic uncommon minerals.
“We are going to person each this wealth successful there, and I accidental I privation it back. And I told them that I privation the equivalent, similar $500 cardinal worthy of uncommon earth,“ Trump said. “And they person fundamentally agreed to bash that, truthful astatine slightest we don’t consciousness stupid.”
Trump besides confirmed Monday that helium volition soon dispatch to Ukraine his peculiar envoy Keith Kellogg, who is tasked with drafting up a connection to halt the fighting.
Trump is pressing for a swift extremity to the conflict, portion Zelensky is calling for pugnacious information guarantees from Washington arsenic portion of immoderate woody with Russia.
Kyiv fears that immoderate colony that does not see hard subject commitments -- specified arsenic NATO rank oregon the deployment of peacekeeping troops -- volition conscionable let the Kremlin clip to regroup and rearm for a caller attack.
Zelensky's spokesperson Sergiy Nikiforov told AFP the Ukrainian president volition conscionable with Vance this Friday connected the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.
A root successful Zelensky's bureau said Kellogg would get successful Ukraine connected February 20, without detailing wherever successful the state helium would visit.
His travel would travel conscionable days earlier the three-year day of Russia's penetration connected February 24.
Zelensky called Monday for “real bid and effectual information guarantees” for Ukraine.
“Security of people, information of our state, information of economical relations and, of course, our assets sustainability: not lone for Ukraine, but for the full escaped world,“ helium said.
“All of this is being decided now,“ Zelensky added successful a video code published connected societal media.
- Trump meetings -
Trump has said helium wants to broker an extremity to the warfare but has not outlined a elaborate connection to bring the 2 sides to the negotiating table.
Both Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin person antecedently ruled retired nonstop talks with each other, and determination appears to beryllium small crushed wherever the 2 could onslaught a deal.
Putin is demanding that Ukraine retreat from swathes of its southbound and eastbound that Kyiv inactive has power over, and considers person ties betwixt Ukraine and NATO inadmissable.
Zelensky has meantime rejected immoderate territorial concessions to Moscow, though helium has acknowledged that Ukraine mightiness person to trust connected diplomatic means to unafraid the instrumentality of immoderate territory.
Russia says it has annexed 5 regions of Ukraine -- Crimea successful 2014 and past Donetsk, Kherson, Lugansk and Zaporizhzhia successful 2022 -- though it does not person afloat power implicit them.
Zelensky said Monday a gathering with Trump was being arranged though a day had not yet been fixed, portion Trump had said past week helium would “probably” conscionable Zelensky successful the coming days, but ruled retired personally travelling to Kyiv.
The New York Post reported Saturday that Trump told the work helium had spoken connected the telephone to Putin to sermon bringing an extremity to the struggle successful Ukraine, saying the Russian person had told him helium “wants to spot radical halt dying”.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov declined to corroborate oregon contradict the call.
Organisers of the intimately followed Munich Security Conference had confirmed earlier Monday that Zelensky would be the Feb 14-16 summit.
The US delegation is acceptable to see US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arsenic good arsenic Kellogg and Vance, MSC seat Christoph Heusgen told a Berlin property conference.
There volition beryllium nary representatives of the Russian authorities present, Heusgen said.
The gathering comes with Russia advancing crossed Ukraine's eastbound Donetsk region, wherever it has captured respective settlements -- mostly wholly flattened by months of Russian bombardments -- implicit the past year.
Moscow has besides pursued a months-long bombing run against Ukrainian vigor infrastructure, claiming the attacks targeted facilities that assistance Kyiv's military
On Tuesday, the Ukrainian vigor curate said the vigor assemblage “continues to beryllium nether attack”, and Kyiv is “urgently use exigency powerfulness proviso restrictions” to “minimise imaginable consequences”.
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