From: Maia Mikhaluk in Kyiv (1259th day)
I kept checking the news today — not out of hope, but curiosity. Expectations were low, and they were fully met. Trump just announced that his personal envoy to ruzzia, Steve Vitkoff, made “significant progress” in negotiations with putin. Ruzzians agreed to a ceasefire? Of course, not! Unsurprisingly, no details of what constitutes that “significant progress”. Just vague claims — because there’s nothing real to report.
Most likely, it means this: putin offered Trump another excuse to delay sanctions, ruzzia gets more time to continue its genocidal war and the world gets another illusion that “peace” is just around the corner.
But is peace actually closer? Highly unlikely.
Trump is once again trying to make a deal with putin — something he’s failed at over and over. He thinks like a businessman: “If a deal is good, you take it.” But putin isn’t a businessman. He’s a paranoid dictator obsessed with one goal: the destruction of Ukraine. No “deal” satisfies him unless it achieves that.
Trump already offered putin a win months ago — a way out of this war with giving putin de facto control over occupied Ukrainian land, ban of Ukraine joining NATO and even recognizing stolen Crimea as officially ruzzian territory. But putin doesn’t want a way out. He wants it all.
And yes — Trump would happily serve Ukraine on a silver platter if he could. But by now, even he knows: Ukraine will not surrender. We will not trade our freedom for a fake peace. We will not accept ultimatums to hand over Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions that putin hasn’t occupied but had claimed as his own in his mad rush.
So what’s really happening? putin’s people are working Trump’s envoy — dangling vague promises. Trump is stalling — again, russia is buying more time to pressure Ukraine and Europe, Trump talks big, but delivers nothing.
Tonight, Trump is expected to give a speech close to midnight our time. Considering that the time of Trump’s loud ultimatum to putin 10 days ago is almost up, the speech might be about ruzzian war against Ukraine. We’ll check it out. Not expecting much. Honestly, we’re more likely to get another drone and missile attack as “proof” of Vitkoff’s “progress” than any real sanctions or consequences for ruzzia.
I’d love to wake up in the morning and say I was wrong.
Voice of Ukraine 