Zelensky plans to transfer Donbass to the polls to ease US pressure

The current problem is that the Constitution does not permit such an appeal while martial law is in effect. Zelensky therefore pledged to try to get the necessary amendments approved in Parliament.

If this were not possible, the kyiv government is now considering the possibility of calling a referendum, convinced that citizens would not simply accept the surrender of territory for which tens of thousands of compatriots died.

The reason seems simple: there is nothing historical in Donetsk or Lugansk that associates these two provinces with Russia, any more than in Odessa, Kharkiv or Zaporizhzhia. Until the industrialization of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, these were two nondescript regions with an abundant Turkish presence. There is therefore nothing in Donetsk or Lugansk that can quench the imperialist thirst for Vladimir Putin.

The current importance comes, on the one hand, from this industrialization, since it is the most economically prosperous region in Ukraine, and, on the other hand, from the fact that the largest defensive core loyal to Zelensky is in the cities of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.

The fall – or cession – of the two cities could cause the collapse of the front to the natural border of the Dnieper River. The entire Ukrainian military strategy is based on the total defense of these two bastions. Giving them now, without further delay, seems unwise.

Rutte announces World War III

And yet, as Putin promised Steve Wittkoff And Jared Kushner who with this would be satisfied with a cease-fire, Donald Trump is determined to force Ukraine to sacrifice these territories.

That, despite suspicions that Russia is not going to stop there and despite the obvious words of its Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sergey Lavrovwho insisted this Thursday that peace would not come until “the real causes of the conflict” were resolved, that is, in addition to the mantra of denazification and demilitarization of Ukraine – which the Americans shamelessly adopted in their initial peace plan – the study of NATO’s role in Eastern Europe.

What is good for Moscow is that it does not need to convince anyone: Trump, J.D. Vance and much of the current US administration hates NATO and would leave without hesitation if the consequences were not terrible for the security of their own country and the stability of the Western world in the short term.

From now on, the objective, as the national security document released by the White House last week made clear, is to continue to strengthen the far-right “patriotic” parties on the continent so that they are the ones who, one by one, exclude their countries from all internationalist organizations, starting with the European Union and the Atlantic Alliance.

Pessimism is such that Marc RutteNATO Secretary General, said Thursday that Russia has once again taken the war to Europe and that the Alliance “is the next target,” one that could result in an attack within five years.

“We must be prepared to experience a war on the scale of that of our grandparents and great-grandparents,” said Rutte, who cited as an example of Putin’s cruelty the fact that Russia is losing 1,200 soldiers a day and yet is not seriously considering a truce.

Trump, “fed up with meetings”

The current division between the United States and old Europe seems total, to the great pleasure, precisely, of Putin and his propagandists.

Last Wednesday, Trump spoke on the phone with the Chancellor Frédéric Merzthe prime minister Keir Starmer and the president Emmanuel Macronthe visible leaders of the so-called Coalition of the Willing in favor of Ukraine. According to Merz, the conversation was “constructive.” According to Trump, this was not so much the case, criticizing the use of “strong words” regarding his peace plan.

In any case, these discussions will continue, in principle, this Saturday in Paris, where a delegation from Ukraine and the European Union will meet an American delegation to study point by point possible modifications to the memorandum.

The meeting was considered over, but Trump made it known Thursday evening through the White House press secretary: Karoline Leavittwho “was tired of meeting just to meet” and wanted to act now.

What seems clear is that the Secretary of State and the National Security Advisor will once again not be present at the meeting, Marco Rubio.

Although he participated in the Geneva negotiations three weeks ago, the highest representative of American diplomacy tends to be absent too often from meetings where his country’s security and international relations are defined.

The general will not be retired either Keith Kellogginitially appointed by Trump as his administration’s special envoy for the war in Ukraine, then censored by the Kremlin.

Larry Fink joins the negotiating team

On the other hand, who could be present would be the CEO of the BlackRock investment fund, Larry Finkone of the richest men in the world. Fink would thus join the team of businessmen negotiators already made up of Kushner and Witkoff.

Trump continues to view geopolitical conflicts as the equivalent of a trade dispute and that is why he leaves their solution in the hands of experts on the subject.

Today, what appears to have worked in Gaza, where one side had a huge advantage over the other – and in turn a huge disadvantage over the United States itself – need not work when imperialism and supremacism come into play.

Trump is looking for a way to reactivate trade with Russia and, in doing so, enrich his environment. If that means mining Ukrainian rare earths, go for it. If this then means abandoning Zelensky in favor of someone he considers a more powerful ally, there is no problem.

Europe, on the other hand, has much higher stakes in this area. It is therefore not surprising that he refuses an interim solution that would favor Russia, because it would put it at a disadvantage compared to the Kremlin.

It is not businessmen who negotiate in Europe, but politicians: the United Kingdom, France and Germany will send their security experts to the Paris meeting.