On February 12, President Donald Trump and US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth presented Washington’s plan for a quick end to the conflict in Ukraine to prioritize other threats, which the secretary said were US border security and competition with China. However, the White House’s proposal is causing controversy among US allies.
Mr. Trump called the leaders of Russia and Ukraine, said he could meet Mr. Putin
The view has changed
Speaking at a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (Kyiv’s main aid donors) in Brussels on February 12, Minister Hegseth affirmed that the US message is that the conflict must end and a lasting peace must be established. However, he stressed that this must be accompanied by a “realistic assessment of the battlefield”, according to which, regaining Ukraine’s territory as it was before 2014, before Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula, is an illusory goal.
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (center) at the NATO conference in Brussels (Belgium) on February 13.
According to a statement from the US Department of Defense, Secretary Hegseth also does not believe that Ukraine's accession to NATO is a practical result of the agreement. In addition, Mr. Hegseth delivered two other important messages: the US will not deploy troops to Ukraine to ensure security and Europe must be the main aid provider to Ukraine. "The United States will no longer accept an unbalanced relationship that encourages dependence. Instead, our relationship will prioritize empowering Europe to shoulder responsibility for its own security," Mr. Hegseth said, proposing to increase defense spending by each NATO country by 5%.
Speaking at the White House later, President Trump supported Minister Hegseth's view that Ukraine joining NATO was unrealistic, according to AP. "They (the Russians) have said for a long time that Ukraine cannot be in NATO and I agree with that," President Trump said. In addition, he said he had a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss a ceasefire agreement in the near future. Mr. Trump said he agreed with the Russian leader to instruct officials of the two countries to immediately begin negotiations on Ukraine, and said the two could meet in Saudi Arabia.
Russian Akatsiya self-propelled artillery in eastern Ukraine (photo released on February 12)
PHOTO: RUSSIAN MINISTRY OF DEFENSE/AP
The Kremlin confirmed that Ukraine was the main topic of the call, adding that President Putin emphasized addressing “the root causes of the conflict.” President Trump called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shortly afterward and shared information about the call with Putin with Kyiv.
Concession or Realism?
According to AP, Mr. Trump’s call with Mr. Putin could send an important signal that the United States and Russia are leaving Ukraine out of the conflict negotiations. That is a complete reversal of the policy of the previous administration of Joe Biden, which emphasized that Kyiv must be a decision-maker. European countries such as Britain, France, Germany, Italy and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte yesterday jointly issued a statement that Ukraine and Europe must be involved in any dialogue on Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Makes Surprising Proposal on Russian Territory
In addition, many experts believe that the US's reversal of its policy on Ukraine's territory and the exclusion of NATO membership for the country are clear concessions to Russia's long-standing demands. "Why did the Trump administration give Putin these gifts before starting negotiations?", former US ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul wondered. Former Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said that the US's statement on NATO and not sending troops to Ukraine was like Washington was "abandoning" Kyiv.
Meanwhile, Stephen Wertheim, a senior fellow for foreign policy at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, argued that Hegseth's comments on Ukrainian territory were not a concession to Russia but a recognition of reality. According to Wertheim, all sides understand that Ukraine cannot regain all of its territory in this conflict. "Minister Hegseth's comments also do not imply a willingness to recognize that Ukrainian-controlled territory is legally Russian," Wertheim noted. The expert also said that clarifying the limits of war objectives could promote successful negotiations by signaling to Russia that the US has realistic goals.
As for NATO membership, the statement sends a signal to Ukraine that it should not emphasize this goal in negotiations but rather focus on what is achievable. "With Washington's staunch opposition, no Ukrainian leader can achieve NATO membership," Wertheim commented.
Previously, Mr. Zelensky warned about the dangers of negotiating with insufficient security guarantees. He emphasized that security guarantees without the participation of the US were weak commitments. In an interview with The Economist , Mr. Zelensky said that if Ukraine could not join NATO, it would have to have military strength equal to Russia and would need financial and military support from Europe and the US. He concluded that admitting Ukraine was still the "cheapest" security commitment for the West.
Nigel Gould-Davies, a researcher on Eurasia and Russia at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS, UK), said that it is unlikely that a ceasefire will be reached because Russia has repeatedly stressed in recent months that it does not agree to freeze the conflict and is only interested in a comprehensive solution, which involves many complex political and legal issues. According to the latest assessment of the IISS, Russian forces are in a stronger position on the battlefield and have enough resources to fight for at least another year, while Ukraine still has to rely on Western support and needs to improve its military management.
China proposes to hold US-Russia summit?
The Wall Street Journal yesterday, citing sources in Beijing and Washington, revealed that China recently proposed to the Trump administration through an intermediary to hold a US-Russia summit and facilitate peacekeeping efforts after reaching a ceasefire agreement in Ukraine. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun yesterday said he had no information about the report and said Beijing was happy to see Russia and the US increasing communication on international issues.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/my-thay-doi-chinh-sach-ve-ukraine-185250213215526565.htm
Comment (0)